Arpitha Yoga 17ME113 8217639817

The Stellar Evolution

Like all things in our universe, stars also have a natural life cycle because in this universe,
nothing lasts forever. From protostars to black holes, all stars follow certain stages during
their enormous lifetime. Stars are the most important celestial objects in our universe,
without them, we’d simply not exist. “… Be noble for you are made of stars” is a famous
Serbian proverb. Everything in this universe simply started off as stardust. After the big
bang, the universe started expanding and the primordial stars were born. These stars were
capable of forming the essentials for the life to begin, like carbon, nitrogen and oxygen, the
building blocks of life.

Stars are thermonuclear generators; they work through the process of fusion. All stars are
different; their timescales are different and the changes they go through are different. Stars
can be divided into high mass and low mass. A low mass star is around 0.8-10 M☉(solar
masses, 0.8-10 times the mass of our sun) while high mass stars are around 10-150 M☉. Our
sun is a low mass star.

A star’s life starts of from a nebula where there is cloud of gas and dust which coalesce due
to high density regions under the force of gravity. The gas is mainly composed of hydrogen
and helium. The density of these regions increase, thereby attracting more atoms from the
surrounding area to form the proto-star. Here, the star starts to heat up due to gravitational
collapse which in turn increases the internal pressure, resisting the gravitational attraction.
However, contraction still takes place and once it comes to a complete stop, the core
becomes hot enough for hydrogen fusion to take place. Now the star enters main sequence.
Our sun, a G2 star is also in its phase of main sequence.

Each time fusion takes place, a little bit of energy is released, but in the
core of a star it happens countless number of times every second.
Although there is electrostatic repulsion between the protons of the
atoms, the pressure and temperature inside the core is so high that it
overcomes this force and is fused to form helium. The rate at which
fusion takes place depends on the pressure of the core. High mass stars
are able to squeeze hydrogen harder allowing fusion to occur quicker.
This is also the reason why they run out of fuel more quickly. Stars range
from 20 million – 10 billion years in this phase. Roughly 9 out of 10 stars
in our universe are in main sequence. The energy radiated by the star
balances out the energy produced during fusion, therefore keeping the temperature
constant. The radiation pressure pointing outwards is balanced by the gravitational pull,
keeping the size of the star constant. Hollywood life maybe luxurious but it is difficult to be a
star. There are several forces working together to just keep them twinkling.

Once the hydrogen has run out, the state of equilibrium is broken. Since there is no outward
pressure, the core contracts which increases the temperature. The rate of energy output
increases causing the star to expand.
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Now here, things start to change a little. Depending on what kind of star we’re dealing with,
it will take its own route and reach its final destination. Let’s start off with the low mass star
like our sun and see how things lead to its death. Here the star enters a new stage where it
turns into a red giant. The core continues to contract, increasing the temperature and
starting the fusion of helium into beryllium and carbon. The size of a red giant turns out to
be more than 100-1000 times the size of our present sun. Since the energy of the star is
spread out across a larger area, the red giant cools down. A cooler star has less energy and
this energy corresponds to a colour of a certain wavelength. Lower energy means the
wavelengths are longer leading to the appearance of a red colour, hence termed as the “red
giant”.

Now we reach the death of the star. At this point helium fusion comes to an end at the core
and the core once again collapses.
If the mass of the core is less than 1.4 M☉, no more thermonuclear reactions take place as
the temperature is not sufficient. Fusion stops taking place because the core doesn’t have
enough mass to squeeze the carbon nuclei to fuse. This causes the star to expel its outer
layers leading to the formation of a planetary nebula.
Since there is no nuclear burning, there is no outward pressure, thereby allowing the
remnants of the core to collapse, forming a glowing hot and dense star called a white dwarf
at around surface temperatures of 100,000 degrees Celsius. Sirius B is the closest white
dwarf to us. Since fusion stops after carbon is formed, the leftover core is primarily carbon.
It is said that the core of a white dwarf forms crystallised carbon due to the intense pressure
and temperature. What is a core of crystallised carbon? Diamonds.
The white dwarf eventually cools down by emitting its heat until it dims down to a black
dwarf. However, we cannot comment much on black dwarves because they are firstly black,
therefore they cannot be seen. Secondly, the universe is too young for these celestial
objects to even exist. This is a hypothetical end of the evolution of a degenerate star.

Let’s go back to where the star starts to expand during the end of main sequence.
Now we can move on to high mass stars. The exact same sequence occurs where the star
expands in size due to the collapse of the core. Hydrogen fuses in the outer layers of the
star where it is still found. However, here it is called as a red super giant. The most well-
known red super giant in our galaxy is Betelgeuse, found in the Orion constellation. In
general, red supergiants have a radii approximately 1500 times larger than our sun. Inside
the red supergiant, the pressure in the core is so high that heavier elements are able to
fuse. During this phase, heavier elements are made up to iron. As heavier elements fuse, the
core repeatedly contracts and shrinks increasing the temperature. This results in the
formation of blue supergiants. Rigel, another star in Orion is a blue supergiant. Once iron is
formed, it actually takes in the energy rather than emitting it, compressing the core even
more causing it to completely collapse.

Here, two things can happen; all dependent on the mass of the leftover core. If the mass is
between 1.4-3 M☉, the collapse produces a shock wave which causes the star to explode
resulting in the most violent event the universe can offer, a supernova. The energy
produced is so intense that fusion of heavier elements occurs, which is why so many
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elements naturally exist on Earth. This method of fusion is known to astronomers as

explosive nucleosynthesis. These heavy elements become a part of the next generation of
stars and planets. They have so much energy that they outshine every star in our universe.
Now what is left behind is a neutron star. This occurs when proton, electrons and other
subatomic particles are smashed together forming a ball of neutrons. Every small space of a
neutron star is filled with neutrons, which is why it is immensely dense. A teaspoon of
neutron star weighs about 10 million tons. Here’s a small trivia fact, the key left lying at the
doorstep of the Fortress of Solitude is said to be made out of neutron stars which is why
only Superman can lift it.

If the core leftover is greater than 3 M☉, the core collapses further as the gravity gets
stronger and stronger. The escape velocity starts to increase, up until the size of the core
reaches around 18km. At this point the escape velocity at the surface is equal to the speed
of light. Nothing can escape this force of gravity including light as nothing can travel faster
than the speed of light. Since no light can escape, it looks black. So, whatever happens in a
black hole, stays in the black hole. The event horizon is where the escape velocity at the
surface is equal to the speed of light. It is said that all major galaxies have a supermassive
black hole at the heart just like our milky way, and it might be crucial for the formation of
galaxies itself. Now, we have reached the end of the life cycle of stars.

One number keeps on popping up – 1.4 M☉. This is a very special number known as the
Chandrasekhar Limit. It is the maximum mass that a stable white dwarf can have. Anything
below 1.4 M☉will forever remain as a white dwarf, anything above this will end up as a
neutron star or a black hole depending on the mass of the core left behind.

Thus, like other things in our universe, a star is born, lives its life and eventually dies.