What prevents stars greater than about 100 times the Sun's mass from existing?
A)The rate of thermal expansion would overcome gravitational attraction leading to explosion.
B)The gravitational attraction would overcome the rate of thermal expansion leading to a black hole.
C)Fusion cannot take place at these higher mass levels.
D)The gaseous material of the universe is too widely dispersed to allow for the formation of stars of this mass.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Stars greater than about 100 times the Sun's mass are prevented from existing because the rate of thermal expansion in such massive stars would overcome the gravitational attraction, leading to instability and potentially explosive dispersal of the star's material. This is a result of the intense radiation pressure generated by the high rate of nuclear fusion in their cores.

What Prevents Stars Greater Than About 100 Times the Sun's