Atoms in gas cloud                Stars
 ----------------------------------------------------
       10^(-10) m        radius      10^9 m

       0.01 m          separation    10^(16) m

       100 m/s           speed       30 km/s
 ----------------------------------------------------

   You have two lacrosse balls, each of which is 3 cm in radius.
Suppose you use those balls to represent two stars like the Sun....

   1. How far apart should the balls be?




 


   2.  How long does it take each one to move its own diameter?







   3.  How long does it take each one to cross the distance to its neighbor?






  A rough calculation of the time it takes objects to collide with each
other is given by
                                      3
                          (separation) 
          time  =  -------------------------------
                    (speed) * (radius) * (radius)


   4.  Roughly how long will it take two stars like the Sun in our 
       galaxy to collide with each other?