AY 101 Chapter Notes - Chapter 14: White Dwarf, Accretion Disk, Observable Universe
16 Jul 2016
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Document Summary
We have now seen the mind-bending consequences of stellar death. These binary systems produce some of the most spectacular events in the universe, including ovae, white dwarf supernovae, and x-ray bursters: black holes are holes in the observable universe that strongly warp space and time around them. The nature of black hole singularities remains beyond the frontier of current scienti c understanding. What is a white dwarf: a white dwarf is the core left over from a low-mass star, supported against the crush of gravity by electron degeneracy pressure. A white dwarf typically has the mass of the sun compressed into a size no larger than earth. What can happen to a white dwarf in a close binary system: a white dwarf in a close binary system can acquire hydrogen from its companion through an accretion disk that swirls toward the white dwarf"s surface.
