What is the approximate average interior temperature characterizing a Giant Molecular Cloud (GMC)?
Answer
$10 ext{ K}$
Star-forming nebulae, known as Giant Molecular Clouds (GMCs), are characterized by extremely low temperatures, which is essential for enabling gravitational collapse to overcome gas pressure. The text specifies that the average interior temperature within these vast molecular nurseries is typically very cold, hovering around $10 ext{ Kelvin}$. This frigid environment ensures that the internal thermal pressure generated by the kinetic energy of the gas particles is minimal, thus allowing the pervasive gravitational attraction exerted by the cloud's own immense mass to become the dominant force capable of initiating the contraction process leading toward star formation.
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