In astrophysics, accretion is the accumulation of cosmic dust particles into a massive object by gravitationally attracting more matter, typically gaseous matter in an accretion disc. This attracted matter accelerates the growth of the particles into boulder-sized planetesimals. The more massive planetesimals accrete some smaller ones, while others shatter in collisions. Accretion discs are common around smaller stars or stellar remnants in a close binary or black holes in the centers of spiral galaxies. Some dynamics in the disc are necessary to allow orbiting gas to lose angular momentum and fall onto the central massive object.
YOU ARE READING
The Wonders
Non-FictionA book about the wonders of space. If you're looking to find about how supernovas, black holes and other stuff are made, you found the right book. Unfortunately, since I'm not creative enough, most of these definitions will be coming from the Wikipe...
