What happens when a small star dies?

Stars die because they exhaust their nuclear fuel. Once there is no fuel left, the star collapses and the outer layers explode as a ‘supernova’. What’s left over after a supernova explosion is a ‘neutron star’ – the collapsed core of the star – or, if there’s sufficient mass, a black hole.

What happens to a white dwarf when it dies?

The white dwarf is considered “dead” because atoms inside of it no longer fuse to give the star energy. But it still “shines” because it is so hot. Eventually, it will cool off and fade from view. Our Sun will reach this death about 8 billion years from now.

What happens when a red dwarf star dies?

When the red dwarf finally runs out of fuel completely, it becomes a white dwarf. Unlike blue dwarfs, white dwarfs do currently exist – because other types of stars also become white dwarfs. In fact, 97% of all stars shrink and become white dwarfs rather than becoming supernovas, so there are plenty of them to observe.

What happens when a yellow dwarf star dies?

At the end of his life, a yellow dwarf star becomes a red giant and white dwarf. Transformed into carbon and oxygen, helium is exhausted in its turn and the star dies. The star then gets rid of its outer layers and center contracts into a white dwarf the size of a planet.

How does the death of a white dwarf star happen?

The star moves from a gaseous state through to a liquid and then becomes a solid. As thousands of millions of years go by, the white dwarf becomes cooler and dimmer until its surface temperature approaches absolute zero and its life ends. The remaining burnt out cinder is referred to as a black dwarf. Copyright © 2018 Pass My Exams.

What happens to a high mass star when it dies?

High mass stars end up as neutron stars and in some cases black holes. The animation below shows the final stages of a yellow dwarf star into its formation of a white dwarf. Yellow dwarfs are the remains of stars with a mass less than three solar masses i.e. a mass less than three times the mass of our sun

Are there any black dwarfs in the universe?

At less than 14 billion years old, the universe is still too young to have created any black dwarfs. A main sequence star that lacks the mass necessary to explode in a supernova will become a white dwarf, a ‘dead’ star that has burned through all of its hydrogen and helium fuel.

How long does it take for a star to die?

The Death of a Star. Several billion years after its life starts, a star will die. How the star dies, however, depends on what type of star it is.