Aqeelhomework8.docx - COURSE NAME: Principles of Astronomy...

COURSE NAME: Principles of Astronomy (ESS_3290)
DATE: 18.07.2021
HOME WORK - 18 & 19
Chapter 18:
1. What is degeneracy pressure, and how is it important to the existence of white
dwarfs and neutron stars? What is the difference between electron degeneracy
pressure and neutron degeneracy pressure?
2. Describe the mass, size, and density of a typical white dwarf. How does the size of a
white dwarf depend on its mass?
3. What happens to the electron speeds in a more massive white dwarf, and how does
this behavior lead to the white dwarf limit for mass?

4. What is an accretion disk? Describe how an accretion disk can provide a white
dwarf with a new source of energy.
5. What is a nova? Describe the process that creates a nova and what a nova looks like.
6. What processes may cause a white dwarf supernova? Observationally, how do we
distinguish white dwarf and massive star supernovae?