Neutron Stars
| Professors: Cui, Lyutikov Neutron stars were first discovered by astronomers, they were sending out very fast, very bright, periodic radio pulses, and different ones were pulsing at different speeds. They looked like they might be space beacons, similar to lighthouses. We know now that they are a perfectly natural phenomenon. A neutron star contains the entire mass of the sun compressed into a ball only 20km in diameter, size of a city. They are as dense as if you took all the water in Cape Cod Bay and squeezed it into a single tear-drop. The density exceeds that in the center of an atomic nucleus and exceeds that which can be manufactured at the center of the biggest atomic accelerators (atom-smashers). Often Neutron Stars capture a normal, solar type star nearby and tear gas of the more normal star. This gas heat up to X-ray temperatures as it falls onto the surface of the neutron star. When enough gas collects on the surface of the neutron star, it explodes and a bright burst of x-rays are seen. Today researchers measure the mass and radius of neutron stars, measure their spin periods, search for new neutron stars, and attempt to discover new places where they may lurk. |
 A neutron star's anatomy is very simple, and it has three main layers: a solid core, a "liquid" mantle, and a thin, solid crust. A neutron star also has two axes: a magnetic one and an axis of rotation. |