Randy L. Phelps.

RANDY L. PHELPS

This is the Stellar Evolution Web Assignment

1. For this assignment, please look through the "lecture" notes for "Stellar Evolution". These notes contain the material, in condensed form, that I will expect you to become familiar with. There are also web links that you should explore as part of this web-based assignment. Together my notes, along with the links, will allow you to answer the questions below that will form the basis of the exam questions regarding star formation.

2. In addition, you should explore the following web sites to give you additional information. The material located at these sites should be complementary to that found in the lecture notes, and can be used to become familiar with the material below and to answer the questions given below.

Stellar Evolution	http://observe.ivv.nasa.gov/nasa/space/stellardeath/stellardeath_opening.html	A Good Introduction

Planetary Nebulae	http://oposite.stsci.edu/pubinfo/pr/97/pn/	Pretty pictures!

White Dwarfs	http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/science/know_l1/dwarfs.html	A Good Introduction

Supernovae	http://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/snr.html

Neutron Stars/Pulsars	http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/science/know_l1/pulsars.html	A Good Introduction

General Relativity	http://www.ncsa.uiuc.edu/Cyberia/NumRel/NumRelHome.html
	http://cassfos02.ucsd.edu/public/tutorial/GR.html

Black Holes	http://universe.gsfc.nasa.gov/videos/old_faithful.html
	http://www.ncsa.uiuc.edu/Cyberia/NumRel/BlackHoles.html
	http://legacy.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/blackhole.html
	http://chandra.harvard.edu/xray-source/black_holes.html

After undertaking this web assignment, you should be comfortable with the following material:

What occurs in the interior of a star as it grows older?
What defines a crtical stage before a star "dies?
What are the three possible ways that a star can die, and what dictates which outcome will arise?
Where are all of the chemical elements heavier than iron produced?
How does Einstein's General Theory of Relativity explain gravity, which Isaac Newton's theory could not?

Additionally, after undertaking this web assignment, you should be able to answer these questions, among others:

What is a main sequence star?
What quantity determines how long a star remains a main sequence star?
After Hydrogen is depleted in the interior of a star, it evolves to become what type of star?
A critical stage in a stars life occurs when what element is left in the core? What are the three possible fates for a star when it reaches this critical stage?
What is a planetary nebula?
How massive is a star that ultimately becomes a white dwarf? Can a white dwarf be seen directly?
What is the diamter of a white dwarf star?
What is a supernova? What causes a star to become a supernova?
Where are all of the elements heavier than iron produced?
How massive is a star that ultimately becomes a neutron star?
What are some unique properties of a neutron star?
What is a pulsar? Can they be detected directly, and if so, how?
If a star has a mass greater than 3 times that of the Sun, what will it become?
What are the four basic ideas within Einstein's Special Theory of Relativity?
What is "spacetime"?
How does Einstein's General Theory of Relativity explain gravity?
How can a black hole be detected, and confirmed as a black hole?
In what part of the electromagnetic spectrum can one detect material spiraling around a black hole accretion disk?

The above questions, and similar ones, will form the basis of the exam questions for this section of the course. It is, therefore, to your advantage to undertake this assignment.