Lecture 33: The Deaths of Stars
What happens to a star when it runs out of hydrogen in its core? This\nlecture describes the post main-sequence evolution of stars. What\nhappens depends on the star's mass. Low mass stars swell up into Red\nGiants, and eventually shed their envelopes and end their lives as white\ndwarf stars. High mass stars become Red Supergiants, and if large\nenough, end their lives in a spectacular supernova explosion that leaves\nbehind a neutron star or black hole. The explosion itself creates\nmassive quantities of heavy elements, which then seed interstellar space\nwith metals to be incorporated into subsequent generations of stars.\nRecorded live on 2009 Nov 12 in Room 1005 Smith Laboratory on the\nColumbus campus of The Ohio State University.