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Explore the Neutron Stars

Some of the strangest objects in the universe, neutron stars are formed when a dying, massive star goes supernova. These are so massive and dense, that a teaspoon of a neutron star would weigh exponentially more than the earth!

True to their name, these are composed almost entirely of neutrons. The conditions in the collapsing core of a star are so intense, that protons and electrons are smashed together by gravity (which results in the formation of neutrons).

The outer layers of the star are flung off into space, leaving a tiny yet extremely powerful object composed entirely of neutrons. What’s more, a neutron star may have a magnetic field 100-million to 1 quadrillion times more powerful and a gravitational field 200 billion times more powerful than that of the Earth's!

(Artistic depiction)

Theoretically, any star which has an initial mass roughly 8 times greater than that of the sun (this is denoted with 8 M☉, or 8 solar masses) has the potential to turn into a neutron star. Once these stars burn and start to exhaust their main fuels i.e hydrogen and helium, these two elements fuse in the core to release energy and form heavier elements, which fuse again with other elements to form heavier elements, due to the massive amounts of pressure present. This eventually results in a core which is rich in iron. Why iron, you may ask? Well, iron has a very tightly-bound nucleus, i.e it is very dense and compact. Because of this, further fusion becomes difficult, and mostly impossible. Without fusion to keep releasing energy, the star soon runs out of an energy source, and begins to die.

SO, HOW EXACTLY DO THEY FORM?

At this point, the star is supported only by a force known as degeneracy pressure. In a nutshell, degeneracy pressure is a pressure that is seen in highly dense objects. It prevents the particles of these objects from being compressed any further. It arises from a physical principle known as the Pauli Exclusion Principle. This pressure is mainly responsible for keeping stars from shrinking indefinitely once the nuclear fusion in their core stops.