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What would happen if a white dwarf gained enough mass to reach the 1.4 solar-mass white dwarf limit?
If a white dwarf gained enough mass to reach the 1.4 solar-mass white dwarf limit, it would undergo a catastrophic event known as a Type Ia supernova. This explosion would release a tremendous amount of energy and result in the complete destruction of the white dwarf.
What happens to the size of a white dwarf when its mass is increased?
When the mass of a white dwarf increases, its size decreases. This is because the increased mass causes the white dwarf to contract under its own gravity, making it smaller and denser.
Is a white dwarf star is one that does not have fuel to make is own energy?
That's called a "black dwarf". Such objects are hypothetical; they are not expected to exist yet, since it takes a white dwarf longer, to cool down to a black dwarf, than the current age of the Universe.
There is an upper limit on the speed of a particle This means that there is also an upper limit on its?
energy. As a particle's speed approaches the speed of light, its energy increases, but it cannot exceed a certain value. This limit is known as the speed of light, and particles with mass cannot travel at or beyond this speed.
What will the Sun end up as when its nuclear energy source dies out forever?
The Sun will eventually end up as a white dwarf, a dense, Earth-sized remnant of a star. This will happen after it exhausts its nuclear fuel and sheds its outer layers into space, forming a planetary nebula.
What would happen if a white dwarf gained enough mass to reach the 1.4 solar-mass white dwarf limit?
If a white dwarf gained enough mass to reach the 1.4 solar-mass white dwarf limit, it would undergo a catastrophic event known as a Type Ia supernova. This explosion would release a tremendous amount of energy and result in the complete destruction of the white dwarf.
Is 1.2 Msun white dwarf smaller than 3.0 Msun?
No. A white dwarf cannot exist above a mass of amount 1.4M sun. Above that limit a stellar remnant will become a much smaller and denser object called a white dwarf. A mass of 3.0 M sun is about the upper limit for a neutron star. Above that it is likely to collapse to forma black hole.
What is the maximum size of a white dwarf?
The maximum size of a white dwarf is about 1.4 times the mass of the Sun, known as the Chandrasekhar limit. If a white dwarf exceeds this limit, it can collapse further and ignite as a supernova.
What happens if the mass of a white dwarf reaches the 1.4 solar mass limit?
If the mass of a white dwarf reaches the 1.4 solar mass limit, it will no longer be able to support itself against gravity through electron degeneracy pressure. This will trigger a runaway fusion reaction of carbon and oxygen, leading to a supernova explosion known as a Type Ia supernova.
What is a Chandrasekhar mass and how does it relate to a supernova?
A Chandrasekhar mass is the maximum mass limit (about 1.4 times the mass of the Sun) that a white dwarf star can have before it collapses under its own gravity and triggers a supernova explosion. When a white dwarf accretes matter from a companion star or merges with another white dwarf, exceeding the Chandrasekhar mass, it can collapse and explode as a Type Ia supernova.
What is Chandrasekhar's Limit?
The Chandrasekhar Limit, also called the Chandrasekhar mass, is the point beyond which the "electron degeneracy pressure" within a white dwarf star no longer balances the star's own gravity. It places an upper limit on the possible mass of a white dwarf. If a white dwarf's gravity pulls material away from a neighboring star, adding it to the white dwarf and increasing its mass, the Chandrasekhar mass (roughly 1.4 times the mass of our Sun) can eventually be reached and surpassed. When the balance between electron degeneracy pressure and gravity ends, the force of gravity rapidly collapses the white dwarf, and the resulting pressure and density result in a violent outward explosion that destroys the white dwarf. In Astronomy, this is known as a type Ia supernova. There have been a small number of type Ia supernovae (supernova "2007if" was the second known) which were believed to occur at masses significantly above the Chandrasekhar limit. The prevailing theory is that in these cases, two white dwarves collided, resulting in the limit being abruptly exceeded.
When a white dwarf exceeds the Chandrasekhar limit what happens?
When a white dwarf exceeds the Chandrasekhar limit of about 1.4 times the mass of the Sun, electron degeneracy pressure is no longer able to support the star against gravity. This leads to the collapse of the white dwarf, resulting in a supernova explosion.
Are white dwarf stars a low mass star?
A white dwarf is the remnant of a low to medium mass star.
What happens to the size of a white dwarf when its mass is increased?
When the mass of a white dwarf increases, its size decreases. This is because the increased mass causes the white dwarf to contract under its own gravity, making it smaller and denser.
Is white dwarf a massive star?
No. A white dwarf is the remnant of a low to medium mass star.
Why would a white dwarf become a red dwarf?
A white dwarf could not become a red dwarf. A white dwarf is a remnant of a dead star. A red dwarf is a star with a very low mass.
How does the the mass and size of a white dwarf compare with the mass and size of the sun?
A white dwarf, also called a degenerate dwarf, is a small star composed mostly of electron-degenerate matter. They are very dense; a white dwarf's mass is comparable to that of the Sun and its volume is comparable to that of the Earth.
