Astronomy
1st Edition
ISBN: 9781938168284
Author: Andrew Fraknoi; David Morrison; Sidney C. Wolff
Publisher: OpenStax
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Chapter 23, Problem 35E
Say that a particular white dwarf has the mass of the Sun but the radius of Earth. What is the acceleration of gravity at the surface of the white dwarf? How much greater is this than g at the surface of Earth? What would you weigh at the surface of the white dwarf (again granting us the dubious notion that you could survive there)?
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What is the acceleration of gravity at the surface if the white dwarf has 1.5 the mass of the sun and is only half the radius of earth?
The star HD 69830's mass is 1.7 ✕ 1030 kg, its radius is 6.3 ✕ 105 km, and it has a rotational period of approximately 35 days. If HD 69830 should collapse into a white dwarf of radius 7.8 ✕ 103 km, what would its period (in s) be if no mass were ejected and a sphere of uniform density can model HD 69830 both before and after?
After the Sun exhausts its nuclear fuel, its ultimate fate will be to collapse to a white dwarf state. In this state, it would have approximately the same mass as it has now, but its radius would be equal
to the radius of the Earth.
(a) Calculate the average density of the white dwarf (in kg/m³).
kg/m3
(b) Calculate the surface free-fall acceleration (in m/s).
m/s?
(c) Calculate the gravitational potential energy (in J) associated with a 3.38 kg object at the surface of the white dwarf.
J
(d) What If? The escape speed from the "surface" of the Sun, or a distance equal to its radius, is 617.5 km/s. What would be the escape speed (in km/s) from the surface of the white dwarf?
km/s
Chapter 23 Solutions
Astronomy
Ch. 23 - How does a white dwarf differ from a neutron star?...Ch. 23 - Describe the evolution of a star with a mass like...Ch. 23 - Describe the evolution of a massive star (say, 20...Ch. 23 - How do the two types of supernovae discussed in...Ch. 23 - A star begins its life with a mass of 5 MSunbut...Ch. 23 - If the formation of a neutron star leads to a...Ch. 23 - How can the Crab Nebula shine with the energy of...Ch. 23 - How is a nova different from a type Ia supernova?...Ch. 23 - Apart from the masses, how are binary systems with...Ch. 23 - What observations from SN 1987A helped confirm...
Ch. 23 - Describe the evolution of a white dwarf over time,...Ch. 23 - Describe the evolution of a pulsar over time, in...Ch. 23 - How would a white dwarf that formed from a star...Ch. 23 - What do astronomers think are the causes of...Ch. 23 - How did astronomers finally solve the mystery of...Ch. 23 - Arrange the following stars in order of their...Ch. 23 - Would you expect to find any white dwarfs in the...Ch. 23 - Suppose no stars more massive than about 2 MSunhad...Ch. 23 - Would you be more likely to observe a type II...Ch. 23 - Astronomers believe there are something like 100...Ch. 23 - Would you expect to observe every supernova in our...Ch. 23 - The Large Magellanic Cloud has about one-tenth the...Ch. 23 - Look at the list of the nearest stars in Appendix...Ch. 23 - If most stars become white dwarfs at the ends of...Ch. 23 - If a 3 and 8 MSunstar formed together in a binary...Ch. 23 - You have discovered two star clusters. The first...Ch. 23 - A supernova remnant was recently discovered and...Ch. 23 - Based upon the evolution of stars, place the...Ch. 23 - What observations or types of telescopes would you...Ch. 23 - How would the spectra of a type II supernova be...Ch. 23 - The ring around SN 1987A (Figure 23.12) initially...Ch. 23 - What is the acceleration of gravity (g) at the...Ch. 23 - What is the escape velocity from the Sun? How much...Ch. 23 - What is the average density of the Sun? How does...Ch. 23 - Say that a particular white dwarf has the mass of...Ch. 23 - What is the escape velocity from the white dwarf...Ch. 23 - What is the average density of the white dwarf in...Ch. 23 - Now take a neutron star that has twice the mass of...Ch. 23 - What is the escape velocity from the neutron star...Ch. 23 - What is the average density of the neutron star in...Ch. 23 - One way to calculate the radius of a star is to...Ch. 23 - According to a model described in the text, a...Ch. 23 - Do the same calculations as in Exercise 23.42 but...Ch. 23 - If the Sun were replaced by a white dwarf with a...Ch. 23 - A supernova can eject material at a velocity of...Ch. 23 - A supernova remnant was observed in 2007 to be...Ch. 23 - The ring around SN 1987A (Figure 23.12) started...Ch. 23 - Before the star that became SN 1987A exploded, it...Ch. 23 - What is the radius of the progenitor star that...Ch. 23 - What is the acceleration of gravity at the surface...Ch. 23 - What was the escape velocity from the surface of...Ch. 23 - What was the average density of the star that...Ch. 23 - If the pulsar shown in Figure 23.16 is rotating...
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- After the Sun exhausts its nuclear fuel, its ultimate fate will be to collapse to a white dwarf state. In this state, it would have approximately the same mass as it has now, but its radius would be equal to the radius of the Earth. (a) Calculate the average density of the white dwarf (in kg/m³). |kg/m3 (b) Calculate the surface free-fall acceleration (in m/s). m/s? (c) Calculate the gravitational potential energy (in J) associated with a 5.61 kg object at the surface of the white dwarf. (d) What If? The escape speed from the "surface" of the Sun, or a distance equal to its radius, is 617.5 km/s. What would be the escape speed (in km/s) from the surface of the white dwarf? km/sarrow_forwardAfter the Sun exhausts its nuclear fuel, its ultimate fate may be to collapse to a white dwarf state. In this state, it would have approximately the same mass as it has now, but its radius would be equal to the radius of the Earth. (a) Calculate the average density of the white dwarf. (kg/m3)(b) Calculate the surface free-fall acceleration.( m/s2)(c) Calculate the gravitational potential energy associated with a 1.36-kg object at the surface of the white dwarf.( J)arrow_forwardLet's compare the acceleration due to gravity at the surface of a Sun-like star to a white dwarf of similar mass. We know that the force of gravity comes from F= G*m_1*m_2/r^2 and that F = m * a from some of Newton's laws. As such, we know that the acceleration due to gravity is given by a_g = G*m/r^2. With that in mind, let's say that we have a white dwarf star is approximately the size of the Earth which is 1/100 radius of the Sun (0.01 R Sun) and that the white dwarf has a mass that is approximately half the mass of the Sun (0.5 M_Sun). What is the ratio of the acceleration due to gravity at the surface of the white dwarf star (aka the surface gravity) compared to the surface gravity of the Sun-like star (assume its mass is 1 M_sun and radius is 1 R_Sun).?arrow_forward
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- How does a white dwarf differ from a neutron star? How does each form? What keeps each from collapsing under its own weight?arrow_forwardWhat characteristics must a binary star have to be a good candidate for a black hole? Why is each of these characteristics important?arrow_forwardHow much would you weigh if you were suddenly transported to the white dwarf Sirius B? You may use your own weight (or if don’t want to own up to what it is, assume you weigh 70 kg or 150 lb). In this case, assume that the companion to Sirius has a mass equal to that of the Sun and a radius equal to that of Earth. Remember Newton’s law of gravity: F=GM1M2/R2 and that your weight is proportional to the force that you feel. What kind of star should you travel to if you want to lose weight (and not gain it)?arrow_forward
- A black hole is an object with mass, but no spatial extent. It truly is a particle. A black hole may form from a dead star. Such a black hole has a mass several times the mass of the Sun. Imagine a black hole whose mass is ten times the mass of the Sun. a. Would you expect the period of an object orbiting the black hole with a semimajor axis of 1 AU to have a period greater than, less than, or equal to 1 yr? Explain your reasoning. b. Use Equation 7.6 to calculate this period.arrow_forwardCalculate the transit depth for an M dwarf star that is 0.3 times the radius of the Sun with a gas giant planet the size of Jupiter.arrow_forwardA gravitational dead zone is found between two hyper giant stars, HG A and HG B, 34 million km from HG A. It is known that the mass of B is 25 x the mass of A. Determine the distance between the two stars in millions of km.arrow_forward
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