130 likes | 376 Views
Neutron Stars. Will the PowerPoint presentations ever end? No. . Post-Supernova Explosion. Does the entire star destroy itself during SN? NO. Everything past the core is expelled outward at high velocities.
E N D
Neutron Stars Will the PowerPoint presentations ever end? No.
Post-Supernova Explosion • Does the entire star destroy itself during SN? • NO. Everything past the core is expelled outward at high velocities. • Core remains behind. IF mass is between 1 and 3 Msun (solar masses)--> Neutron Star!!
Characterisitics • Extremely dense and small. Average diameter is 20 km (size of Detroit)
Characteristics Cont’d again • Mainly neutrons exist. Interior is questionable. • Neutron-degenerate pressure- pressure exerted by neutrons on neutrons entering their space. • Keeps the neutron stars size “constant”.. Sort of • Rapid rotation (angular momentum). Rotates less than a second. • Extremely powerful magnetic fields (amplified by collapse of core)
What happens to the neutron star? • Eventually it will release most of its radiation and the energy will fade away (a few million years) • It will exist as a large ball of neutrons.
What is a Pulsar? • A source of short precisely time radio bursts. • Caused by the rotation of a neutron star.
On Off Crab Pulsar in the Crab Nebula
VERY BIG Neutron Star • We thought this star had too much mass (greater than 3 solar masses) to be a neutron star. • A good example of the process of science (and how science evolves).