Astronomy 162 - Stars, Galaxies, & the Universe

Lecture 16: The Evolution of Low-Mass Stars

01.26.2006 - By Richard PoggePlay

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What happens to a low-mass star (less than 4 solar masses) when

it runs out of core Hydrogen and must leave the Main Sequence.

This lecture describes the changes inside a low-mass star after

Hydrogen exhaustion through the Red Giant, Horizontal Branch,

Asymtotic Giant, and Planetary Nebula phases. In the end, we will

see the star's envelope and core go their separate ways, the

envelope gently puffed off into space, briefly flowering as a

Planetary Nebula, and the Carbon-Oxygen core collapsing into

a White Dwarf.

Recorded 2006 January 26 in 1008 Evans Laboratory on the Columbus campus

of The Ohio State University.

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