What challenge did the earliest primordial clouds face regarding cooling mechanisms for star formation?
Answer
They lacked the necessary abundance of CO to serve as an efficient coolant.
The very first stars formed in the universe under chemically primitive conditions, lacking significant amounts of heavier elements like carbon and oxygen compared to modern interstellar medium. This lack of heavier elements meant they could not efficiently form Carbon Monoxide ($ ext{CO}$), which functions as a crucial coolant that allows gas to shed thermal energy without immediately collapsing uncontrollably. Because their cooling mechanisms were inefficient, these primordial clouds needed to accumulate far greater masses than contemporary clouds for gravity to successfully overwhelm the internal thermal pressure and initiate star formation.
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