11. EVOLUTION OF STARS SYLLABUS star ease Poa TT) and main sequence evolution, White dwarfs, Pulsar = » Supemova explosion- its types, Chandrasekhar limit. Event | rs and Schwarzehild’s radius (qualitative) 11.1 Introduction stars have a beginning and an end. The time gap between its birth and death i i ¢ sta. The life time of a star may be thousands, millions or billions of aaa ae (lable-11.1). During the life time of a star, it undergoes a sequence of changes, the sequence of changes, a star undergoes during its life time is called Stellar Evolution. Stellar Evolution is rot studied by observing a single star, as life of a man is much smaller than the life time of a sta. ‘Astrophysicists do so by observing numerous stars, which are at various stages in their life and by simulating stellar structure using computer. In other words, stars change overtime. Not all stars are born aiautteageens They ec ed Seas mans) Tne (Se | Syectal v8 bom from clouds of interstellar gas and dust. 0: 3milion o, Stars are at different stages of evolution. Some a 11 miltion °, are just in the process of forming. they shine by 0: 32 million B buming the nuclear fuels in their cores. Some 3 370 million As have already exhausted their fuel and are dead. 15 3 billion F Some of the matter returns back to interstellar 1 10 billion G, Sun space and used up to form new stars again. Ol 1000 billion M, Now we will consider the different stages of Toei formation of star. 11.2 Different stages of star formation. All stars follow the same basic series of steps stages in their lives. Giant molecular cloud, protostar, T-Tauri stage, Main sequence, Evolution of main sequence and remnant are the different stages depending on initial mass of the star. 1, Giant Molecular Cloud (GMC) A star begins its life in a dense nebulae called giant molecular cloud (GMC). They are so called because much of the Hydrogen is in molecular (H,) form. In addition, they consist of Helium-and traces of other elements. These GMCs have a typical density of 100 particles per cm’, diameters of 100 light years (9.5x10"km), masses up to 6 million solar masses and an average interior temperature of 10K. these clouds of gas and dust contract due to gravity through millions of years. If a cloud is massive enough that, the gas pressure no longer supports it, the cloud become gravitationally unstable, undergo gravitational collapse. (Fragmentation of the huge cloud into smaller fragments) some of these fragments gradually contract and gain gravitational potential energy. Each of these fragments, radiates away the 167 [oe Oe e —Physics Made Si 168 imple energy gained by the release of gravitational potential cote ae Goes the density of fragments increases, they become opaque and thus ioe efit iting aay their energy. This results in increase in temperature of the cloud and inhil agment. ‘These fragments condense into rotating spheres of gas f0 form the pre-stellar bodies called proto star. 2. Protostar A protostar is a contracting mass of gas which represents an early stage in the formation of a star, before nuclear reaction start. : Depending on the size of the GMC, several protostars can form into one cloud. The contraction of the protostar continuous at a rapid rate in the beginning, but later when the internal pressure builds up, the contraction slows down. This stage is a pre- main sequence main stage called T Tauri stage. 3. T Tauri stage T Tauri stage is intermediate stage between protostar stage and main sequence stage. They stay in this stage for about 100 million years. The radiations come entirely from the gravitational energy, as the central temperatures are too low to start nuclear fusions. The energy Feleased due to gravitational contraction is partly utilized to increase internal temperature, the remaining is radiated is away (according to Virial theorem). The simultaneous increase in the density and the temperature increases the internal pressure. ‘As the pressure goes up the stellar matter becomes opaque to the radiation. Ionization of hydrogen and helium is triggered. When the temperature is about 10*K, all the hydrogen and helium are completely ionized. After ionization the temperature of the core reaches about 10°K. At this temperature, hydrogen fusion starts to form helium, with the release of ‘enormous amount of energy. lq+H>7H+er +7 2H H+ FH +7 3He + 3He—> ‘He +2'H The star’s luminosity increases due to the production of photons. The photons produce radiation pressure which is outward. The inward gravitational force act opposite to the outward radiation pressure, and an equilibrium stage is reached, which is called hydrostatic equilibrium. Thus, the star enters the main sequence stage. 4. Main sequence stage ‘The star will occupy a specific position on the main sequence spectral type depending upon the mass of the star. Ifthe initial mass of the fragment is about 1/20, that of the sun, a small, low luminosity, low mass red dwarfs formed, which fuse Hydrogen slowly and remains 0 the main sequence for hundreds of billions of years or longer. A cloud fragment about 50 solar masses becomes a O type star, which sits on the main sequence for just 4 few million ie ‘A medium size star like sun will remain on the main sequence for about 10 billionration of stars a Main sequence is the stage during which a star spends its Wfetime by burning hydrogen tn its core. Stars on the main sequence change very little. The evolutionary track of a star, like the sun across the HR diagram is ax shown in the fig, Wl = ee Effective emperture + 101K Fig 5, Main sequence evolution When the core exhausts its supply of hydrogen, the star begins to evolve off of the main sequence, Because of the absence of outward radiation pressure, the force of gravity takes over. The core shrinks until either electron degeneracy pressure becomes sufficient to oppose gravity or the core becomes hot enough (around 10°K) for helium fusion to begin. Stars evolve because of changes in their composition. Which of these processes happen depends on the mass of the star. Case (i) Low mass of star: Low mass of stars of 0.1M,, may stay on the main sequence for some six to twelve trillion years, gradually increasing both temperature and luminosity. Hydrogen fusion continues till all the hydrogen is converted to helium, take several billion years to collapse into white dwarf. Case (li) A star with initial mass lower than 0.8 M,, are not massive enough to attain the temperatures required for Helium fusion. So they never reach the red giant stage, become white dwarfs. Case (iii) star with initial mass 0.8 to 1.44 M,, have sufficient mass to reach the temperatures high enough to fuse helium and these stars become red giants. When the hydrogen fuel of a star is exhausted in the core, it leaves the main sequence and begins to fuse hydrogen outside the core. Since, helium is heavier, the mass of the core increases. This continues for several million years and then the helium core shrinks due to gravity and gravitational potential energy is released outwards. As a result, the temperature of the outer shell increases and the outer layers of the star expands enormously. Since, expansion is a cooling process, the temperature falls and the star appears red. This stage is called red giant stage. The star is very luminous due to its large size. Red giants lie along the top right edge of the HR diagram due to the red color and large luminosity. Sun will become a red giant after 8 billion years from170 Fnysics Made Simple now expanding itself to engulf mercury, venus and earth and will have a luminosity which is 200 times that of the present. In the red giant stage, the helium at the core is compressed enormously due to gravity and the temperature is increased. (25% of the total mass of the star lies at the core in just 0.1% of the total volume of the star). Due to high inward pressure and temperature, the helium atoms will be completely ionized. The core contains only helium ions surrounded by free electrons which are tightly packed and exhibit electron degeneracy pressure ‘outwards and resists further compression. The electron degeneracy pressure is independent of temperature. When the temperature reaches a sufficient value, helium fusion starts (During helium fusion, three alpha particles fuse to form carbon, this is called triple alpha process). ‘He, + ‘He, + “He, > "C, + 7 * ¥- This will increase the temperature of the core further to 3x10°K but the core does not expand due to electron degeneracy pressure. Hence, the temperature increases faster and faster and helium fuses in an ever increasing rate and explodes finally like a nuclear bomb. This is called helium. flash. The helium fusion reaction is completed within few minutes. The helium flash produces more energy per second than the entire galaxy. Stars around the mass of the Sun can synthesize helium and carbon. Massive stars (M>S5M,) can synthesize helium, carbon, oxygen, nitrogen, up to the formation of “Fe. 11.3 Dead stars or Remnants After exhausting all possible nuclear fuels loss of some original mass of ejecting it, stars what a star becomes when it dies depends on the mass left behind. 11.3.1 White dwarfs Fora star of one solar mass (1M,), a white dwarf of 0.6 M, is formed. How actually a 0.6 M, white dwarfs results from an initial mass of 1M,is the question? A star, similar to the sun, burns its hydrogen and the helium to form a star with (the next elements) carbon-oxygen core surrounded by an envelope of helium and hydrogen. The carbon- oxygen core contracts, as a result the temperature of the core increases. However, the temperature is not enough to ignite thermo nuclear reaction, which use carbon-oxygen as fuel, on the other hand the increasing temperature accelerates the rate of burning of the helium and hydrogen shell surrounding the core. Due to the outward radiation pressure, the envelope expands and drifts away to form a planetary nebula. Now, the core having lost its envelope becomes a remnant of the glorious star called white dwarf. Having no nuclear reactions taking place in the core, the white dwarf has no means to stop the gravitational contraction and the core collapses and the radius decreases. However, as a new force develops that resists the gravitational contraction. This force is called the electron degeneracy pressure. Due to contraction of the core, the temperature is so high that all the electrons are stripped off and are free to move throughout the contracting the core. They come more close together as the exclusion principle allows. This kind of state is called a degenerate state. (A degenerate state of matter is the one where no two electrons can have exactly the same energy, spin and position). The degenerate electrons is compressed enough to occupy all the available energy states. |proton of stars m White dwarfs are stable, because the outward degeneracy trons is balanced - a is sy inward poll of gravity. The average density of ast is10"Kem’, which fe mlion ta x es greater than that of sun. ‘Awhite dwarf of one solar mass have a size comy white dwarf weight about 5.Stons, as much as petite Tee aaweee ea site dwarf is due to thermal energy and itis ofthe order of 10°K. They Le ainitiver coe of their smaller size and ‘white’ because of their white hot appearance due to high eee ‘The nearest white dwarf is the companion of the brightest star in the night sky Sirius (dog star) at a distance of 8.58 ly, Procyon B is the next nearest at a distance of 11.43 ly. ae 11.3.1.1 Electron degeneracy in white dwarfs and Chandrasekhar mass limit Flectron degeneracy pressure in white dwarfs and Chandrasekhar’s mass limit Blectrons are fermions, therefore obey Fermi-Dirac statistics and Paul’s exclusion principle. Hence, each electron must have a unique set of quantum numbers corresponding to a particular energy or momentum state. Each orbital can accommodate only two electrons, one with up spin and the other with down spin, and accommodation of third electron is forbidden. Otherwise, a state must be occupied by only one electron. ‘When the core is compressed due to gravity, the atoms come closer and closer trying to push the electrons from peripheral atoms to the neighboring inner atoms in the core or more precisely, the electrons tends to occupy the filled orbitals of atoms in the core. As a result, the electrons start filling the lower most states first and remaining electrons are forced into higher energy states. The gravity tries to compress the electrons further, pushing the electrons to the same occupied lower energy states. As a result, an outward pressure is developed in the electrons to push away the electrons trying to occupy the occupied states (to satisfy Pauli’s principle). This pressure is called electron degeneracy pressure. The outward pressure exerted by electrons occupied at the lowest energy states to resist further entry of electrons to lower energy s degeneracy pressure. The electron degeneracy pressure counters the force of gravity and may h collapse. Chandrasekhar has shown that, e ofa star, if its mass is below 1.44MO=M Chandrasekhar’s mass limit is the mass of a star, alance gravitational contraction forming a white dwarf. Pressure in a star’s core is sufficient to bi OR Chandrasekhar’s mass limit is the mass of a star, pressure in a star’s core is insufficient to counter the tates due to gravitational compression is called electron alt further gravitational Jectron degeneracy pressure halts the gravitational collapse ch. This limit is called Chandrasekhar mass limit (Mch). elow which the electron degeneracy above which the electron degeneracy gravitational contraction.172 Condition for a star to become a white dwarf ofa star of initial mass less than 1.44M,, When the hydrogen fusion is completed in the core the electron degeneracy pressure will be in equilibrium with the gravitational force and halts further collapse of the star and the star becomes a white dwarf. If the mass of the star is greater than 1.44M, and less than 3M,, the electron degeneracy pressure cannot counter the gravitational force and the gravitational collapse continues until all the electrons are pushed to the nucleus to form neutrons and the star becomes a neutron star. Once the neutron star is formed, the neutrons being fermions, exhibit outward neutron degeneracy pressure and balances the gravitational force and halts the further collapse. If the mass of the star is greater than 3M,, the gravitational force dominates the neutron degeneracy pressure and the star further collapses to become @ black hole. 11.3.2 Super nova Astar with amass exceeding Chandrashekar mass limit of 1.44M,. completing its life time peacefully in the main sequence, experience some violent and sudden flare ups. 2x10’K ‘A star with a mass greater than 8M, starts its life with hydrogen burning at about leaving behind a core of helium. The contraction of helium core due to gravity results in increase in temperature sufficient enough to (10°K) ignite helium, to form carbon, oxygen, neon and silicon. Further gravitational contraction of the core results in increase of temperature to about 3x10°K. Silicon burning is triggered leading the star to have a central iron core surrounded by concentric shells containing carbon, oxygen, neon, silicon, helium and hydrogen. The silicon burning produces more iron into the core. Since thermo nuclear fusion of iron cannot occur, the degenerate electrons Cannot further oppose the gravitational contraction. Therefore, iron core collapses by the severe gravitational contraction. The collapse is rapid and ‘almost unopposed until a density comparable {fo the nuclear density is reached (of the order of 10”kgm). The temperature of the core is high enough to start electron capture and photo disintegration of nuclei. (P+ eo” +v) ‘When the density of the core approaches nu‘ up a shock wave. As a result, the external layers of to 5 M,, This ‘outward explosion is called Super nova. Itis process in which, external layers of star are in the after the nuclear, - fuel is exhausted in the star. ‘The total energy liberated in a super nova is of the order of 10J. Some of the super nova were reported to be seen in the day light. Super nova shines up to a billion times greater than its normal luminosity when it explodes. The supernova explosion out shines the entire galaxy. This extra ordinary bright celestial object has an average absolute magnitude in the range of -17 to -19. clear density, the core rebounds strongly and sets f star are ejected out. The ejected mass is about 3 thrown out due to the shock wave produced Types of Super nova There are two types of super novae, 1. Type-I Super nova and 2. Type-ll Super novaEvolution of stars 173 Type-l Super nova results from the collapse of a star into a white dwarf. Ifthe mass of the star is less than Chandrashekar’s mass limit of 144M, and type II super nova occurs at the one sit time of a massive star. It results from the collapse of a star into a neutron star or & Jack hole, 11.3.3 Neutron star Neutron star is a celestial object of very small radius typically with radius of about 30 km and density of the order of 10'’kg/m? (nuclear density) composed predominantly of closely packed neutrons. Neutron stars are formed by the gravitational collapse of the remnant of a massive star (M> 4M.) after a super nova explosion, with the condition that the star is not massive enough to produce a black hole. ‘The core of the neutron star is neutron rich (refer super nova for the formation of neutrons by electron capture) with the density of about 8x10"kgm®. At this density, @ condition known as neutron degeneracy appears. The pressure developed due to neutron degeneracy balances the inward gravitational contraction, which explains the stability of neutron star. They have a typical surface temperature of around 6x10°K and internal temperature range from 10"K to 10°K. The density of a neutron is so high that a spoon full (Sml) containing neutron star material approximately weighs, 5.5x10"kg. They have extremely strong magnetic fields ranging from 10° to 10" times as strong as that of earth. The rotational period of neutron stars range from 1.5 ms to several seconds. As the core shrinks, the rotational rate increases due to conservation of angular momentum. It is estimated that around 100 million neutron stars are present in the milky way. Hubble space telescope has detected a neutron star that emits only thermal radiations. They can be detected easily if they are a pulsar (next section) or part of a binary system. Neutron stars have an upper mass limit similar to Chandrashekar mass limit for white dwarfs. The mass limit of neutron stars is in the range of 3M, to 4M,, Beyond this limit, the neutron degeneracy pressure will not be able to overcome the gravitational collapse, and the star continues through the neutron stage to form a black hole. 11.3.4 Pulsars Pulsars are highly magnetic, rapidly rotating neutron stars that emit electromagnetic pulses periodically. Pulsar is a portmanteau of “Pulsating star”. Pulsars are rapidly rotating neutron stars with very high magnetic field that emit electromagnetic pulses. It was discovered in 1967 by Ms.Bell Burnell, a graduate student and her supervisor Hewish. ‘They observed a regularly pulsating radio source. Shortly before the discovery of pulsars, France Pacini had predicted that, a rotating neutron star with a magnetic field would emit radiation. Afte: the discovery of pulsar Thomas Gold, could explain the pulsed radiation observed by Bell Burne! and Hewish. What makes the pulsar emit pulses periodically?174 ICS WIGS SI A pulsar is a rapidly rotating neutron star with a high magnetic field, as the neutron star spins, the magnetic field spins with it, sweeping that beam through space, (The axis of rotation and that of magnetic field are not aligned) generating electric field, winich results in the acceleration of protons and electrons on the star surface. The accelerated charged particles emit electromagnetic beam from the magnetic poles of the neutron star. Since the beam sweeps over earth, an observer on earth, sees it as a regular pulse of light once in every rotation of the neutron star. The interval of these pulses range from milliseconds to seconds. When the rotation of the pulsar slows down over a period of time, the pulsar emission is believed to turn off. This takes after about 10-100 ‘million years. This is only a general picture of how pulsars emit light. The exact understanding of the pulsar radiation is still in its infancy. 11.3.5 Black Holes Black holes are cosmic objects with very impossible for anything which falls in to them to escape, because if they do so, travel with velocity greater than that of light. Black hole is formed by the collapse of a star of size greater than 4M,. After the super nova explosion, if the core has a mass greater than 2M,, the outward neutron degeneracy pressure is not sufficient enough to counter the inward gravity and the core collapses into a stellar black hole. For stars still more massive, even the super nova stage may skip, so that even their outer shells become incorporated into the black hole. Here, we consider the three important parameters of a black hole. a. Schwarzchid radius John Michell, an English scientist in the year 1783 and later France’s Simon laplace independently postulated the existence of black holes and obtained the mass radius relationship of a cosmic object on which the escape velocity becomes equal to the velocity of light. Consider a particle of mass m at a distance R from the center of mass M. The particle can overcome the gravitational potential and escape to infinity, if its kinetic energy is equal to or greater than its potential energy. high gravity, from which not even light can escape. It is they would have to ie lpeGlm | Ra 2M a eater: v The escape velocity v, of the particle is om where, M and R are the mass and radius of the black hole. For a black hole the radius R shrinks to an extent approaching zero. Therefore, the escape velocity exceeds the velocity of light. Since, nothing can travel faster than light, then nothing else can escape either. Even photons cannot escape from the black hole. Therefore, a black hole cannot be seen. Its presence is detected by its strong gravityvotution of stars 175 affecting on nearby objects. When the back hole swallows a nearby tl < at y star, due to the rapid acceleration of the star, high energy electromagnetic waves in the X-ray region is emitted by studying these x-rays, the presence of the black hole can be detected, From eqn. (1), When v=c, the velocity of light, RR, called the Schwarzchild radius, Se 2GM Schwe ild radius La @) Black hole %* Schwarzchild radius is the radius of the circle around the black hole, at which, the escape velocity of an object is equal to the velocity of light Fig.10.5 Schwarzchild radius and Event horizon b. Singularity The center of the of the black hole is called singularity. At the singularity the whole mass of the black hole is concentrated. So it is a point of zero volume and infinite density. As the distance from the singularity increases the gravity decreases, at a certain distance, (depending on the mass of black hole) the speed needed to escape from the black hole equals the speed of light (at Schwarzchild radius). This distance marks the black hole’s boundary or horizon. c. Event Horizon Event horizon is the spherical region around the black hole within which, an occurrence of any event cannot be determined. Once anything enters inside the event horizon, it cannot come out. Therefore, itis the boundary of the black hole from which nothing can escape. The event horizon is only a few kilometer across. For a non-rotating black hole, the event horizon is spherical, on the other hand for a rotating black hole it is non-spherical. It is estimated that, there may be about a billion stellar black holes in the milky way galaxy with masses roughly three times that of a sun, The first black hole was discovered in 1971 in the constellation Cygnus. This black hole is a companion of the star Cygnus X-1, a blue super giant. The black hole is 8.7 times the mass of the sun and revolve around their centre of mass with a period of 5.6 days. 11.3.6 Variable stars Astar whose luminosity changes with time is called a variable star, There are many different types of variable stars. If the light output of a star changes with time, we call it a variable star. We often plot the apparent brightness of the star verses time, if there is regular periodically to the variation, We can specify the period of variation for the star. The variation of light output may be due to some physical changes occurring inside the star or may be due to partly blocking the light by another cosmic object. Variable stars are classified into two main categories, |. Intrinsic Variable stars and 2, Extrinsic Variable stars.176 1, Intrinsic Variable star. lee The star’s luminosity changes due to the changes in thelt variables and eruptive variables comes under the category © a. Pulsating Variables : By studying the light output verses time, (light curve) one can infer Se aes any change. The period of pulsation of variable star can provide a weal para a about the properties of the star, (such as mass, radius, luminosity, temPe™ composition and evolution). The heating and cooling cycle, which the star undergoes results in the change in luminosity. Example: Cepheids. b. Eruptive Variables ‘These stars show irregular or semi-irregular variations in brightness. to material being lost or in some case accreted to the star. 2. Extrinsic Variable stars Their light curves show variations due to some external source for an observer on earth. For instance, as in the case of eclipsing binary stars. Eclipsing Variables Ifa star has an orbiting companion and this binary system is inclined at an angle to the earth, such that periodically one of the stars eclipses the other star, blocking out a fraction of the light, the apparent brightness changes due to changes in the amount of light that can reach the earth. Such'stars are called eclipsing binary stars. Example: Algol or Beta Persei is one of the examples of eclipsing binary star. ‘CONCEPT QUESTIONS WITH ANSWERS. 1. Can stars live forever? Why? | Ans. No, stars begin their life cycle from giant megallanic clouds spread over several light years. Due to gravity, the gas particles come closer, when hydrogen fusion begins, the star starts to shine and later when all the nuclear fuel gets exhausted, after undergoing a sequence of changes, the glorious life of a star comes to an end. 2. Is nuclear fusion necessary for the birth of a star? ‘Ans. Yes, the gravitational force, contracts the interstellar gas and produ ce, cont produces a temperature of =10°K, then hydrogen fusion is triggered and the star begins to shine, thus a star is born. 3. Do the stars take birth individually? Ans. No, stars are bom together in large cluster (groups) in interstell it i ‘ lar clouds of large density. These clouds under the action of gravity condense, and then fate rae na resulting in the formation of cluster of stars. fee ae star with mass greater than 1.4M,, become white dwarf? lo, if the initial mass of the star is >1.4 M,, the core is heavier and it keeps contracting due to gravity and bs if ® a oa ‘ ecause of the absence of degeneracy pressure, it becomes a neutron star or a 1: physical properties. Pulsating f intrinsic variable stars. ‘These changes are dueAns, 10. Ans. il. Ans. 12. Ans. 13. Ans. . Are all stars of same masses? Explain, - No, stars are born from dense molecular clouds, bigger stars are formed from more massive computer simulation experiments are done from which i ig large. clouds. Due to Sravitational instability these massive clouds break into smaller fragments. If suitable conditions prevail, these fragments give birth to stars of different masses, Does hydrogen and helium fusion occur simultaneously in a star? No, in a star initially hydrogen fusion takes place at a temperature ~10°K forming helium, which being heavier moves towards the core. The size of the core increase and gravity contracts the core resulting in increase of temperature triggering helium fusion. . Can a black hole destroy earth? Explain. . No, there is no black hole close to our solar system. Hence, earth is safe. Ifno information can be retrieved from a black hole. How do we know the existence of black holes? A black hole cannot be seen because, its strong gravity does not allow even light to escape. However, its strong gravity affects the motion of stars around it, which can be observed by telescopes and black holes can be detected. Can a neutron star of mass less than 3M, become a black hole? No, a neutron star of mass less than 3M, cannot become a black hole, because the inward gravitational contraction will not be sufficient to counter act on the outward neutron degeneracy pressure. So the neutron core cannot contract further to become a black hole. Do the electrons in a neutron star disappear? No, in a neutron star, the electrons combine with protons to form neutrons due to increased gravitational pull, as gravity overcomes the outer electron degeneracy pressure. Can a supernova produce a planetary nebula? No. When a massive star explodes as supernova, it may result in the formation of new stars but not planetary nebula. (When white dwarfs shed its outer layers, it can result in the formation of planetary nebula) Does the final stage of a star depend on the initial mass? Explain. Yes, the less massive the star, the longer is its life time. If the initial mass is less than alM,, they become red dwarfs. Their lifetimes are more than several trillion years. If the initial mass of the star is less than 1.4M,=M,,, the star’s remnant becomes a white dwarf, if itis more than 1.4M, it becomes a neutron star or black holes. k5 178 14. Can a star of mass exceeding the Chandrashekar mass Why? mass limit, the outer electron degeneracy ‘Ans. No, fora star of mass exceeding the Chandrashekar pressure is insufficient to counter act the inward gravity, hence, the core collapses to become neutron star or black hole. 15. Do all the neutron stars become pulsars? : ‘Ans. No, for a neutron star to become a pulsar, it should have the right combination of magnetic field strength and spin frequency. SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONS. 1. What is a protostar? 2. What is meant by giant molecular clouds? 3. What is a T Tauri stage? 4. What is meant by red giant phase? 5, How does a protostar become a highly luminous ? 6. 7. 8. it become a white dwarf? 5. What is a white dwarf? |. What is Chandrashekar mass limit? . What is electron degeneracy pressure? 9. What is supernova? 10. What is a neutron star? 11. What are pulsars? 12. What is a black hole? 13. What is Schwarschild’s radius? 14. What is meant by event horizon? 15. Define singularity of a black hole. 16. What are variable stars? LONG ANSWER QUESTIONS Write a note on the different stages of the formation of a star to the main sequence. What is a T-Tauri stage? Explain. |. What is a red giant? Explain its formation. What ts photon diffusion time? Explain. ‘What is a white dwarfs? How is it formed? What is neutron star? Explain its formation. What is a pulsar? Why is it identified with neutron stars? Explain. Obtain an expression for the rate of change of rotational kinetic energy of a pulsar. ‘Write a note on supernova explosion. Distinguish between type-I and type-ll supernovae. ). What are black holes? Explain their formation. ae iat 4o you mean by the terms event horizon and singularity as applied to a black hole. explain. . What are variable stars? Explain their classification. * * * FS eer avaepe 5