Article
Article
Gravitational collapse in aged stars
Article By:
Peters, Philip C. Department of Physics, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington.
Khochfar, Sadegh Max-Planck-Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics, Garching, Germany.
Silk, Joseph Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom.
Last reviewed:May 2019
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.299000
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- Gravitational collapse, published January 2014:Download PDF
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The late stage in stellar evolution in which the pressure in a star is insufficient to maintain the star at a stable size. During gravitational collapse, material in an aged star falls inward under its own gravitational attraction. Depending on the mass and composition of the collapsed star—known as a collapsar (Fig. 1)—the collapse will proceed to the formation of one of three possibilities: a white dwarf star, a neutron star, or a black hole. See also: Black hole; Gravity; Mass; Neutron star; Stellar evolution; White dwarf star
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