Lesson Five Topics

Lesson Five Overview
History of the Neutron Star
The Discovery of the Pulsar
Pulsars and Neutron Stars
How Do Neutron Stars Form?
Properties of Neutron Stars
The Magnetic Field of Neutron Stars
Why Do Neutron Stars Pulse?
Millisecond Pulsars
Pulsar in the Crab Supernova Remnant
Why Study Pulsars?


Activities and Quizzes

Lesson Five : How Do Neutron Stars Form?

Neutron stars result from the death of massive stars, which are around 8-15 times more massive than our Sun. When a massive star collapses and explodes in a tremendous supernova explosion, the dense inner core is all that remains.

When the dying star is collapsing, the core gets progressively denser. Eventually, the elementary particles in the core (protons and electrons) cannot withstand the force of gravity, and they fuse together to form neutron. Eventually, all of the material in the core is converted into neutrons and the origin of the object's name becomes obvious.