Astro 534 -- Stellar Structure and Evolution

Graduate Course covering the physics and stars and their evolution

Class Time: MWF 2:30 - 3:20 Class Room: 541 Davey Lab

Professor: Robin Ciardullo Office: 519 Davey Lab

Office Hours: MWF 1:30-2:20 or any other time Zoom Address: https://psu.zoom.us/j/3404085003

e-mail: rbc@astro.psu.edu Web page: https://sites.google.com/psu.edu/robin-ciardullo/teaching/astro-534

Graduate class in stellar astronomy. The first ~40% of the course will deal with understanding the equations of stellar structure and all the physics that is applicable to stars. The second ~40% of the class uses our knowledge of stellar structure to investigate stellar evolution, from the main sequence to white dwarfs and supernovae. The remainder of the class will be devoted to special topics, such as the evolution of stellar ensembles, asteroseismology, and other current problems in stellar astronomy.

The bulk of the material covered in this class comes from 3 sources. The primary text is Stellar Structure and Evolution by Kippenhahn, Weigaert, & Weiss. If you don't want to buy this book, its on-line version available for free via your Penn State access account. Just Click Here.

While the Kippenhahn book is the best graduate-level text I've found, it does have some weak points. For example, the undergraduate-level textbook Stellar Interiors by Hansen & Kawaler does a much better job on the topic of stellar convection, and is one of the only references that covers the topic of non-radial pulsations. Like the Kippenhahn book, its on-line version available for free via your Penn State access account. Here is the link.

Finally, for the topic of stellar nuclear reaction, there's still no better resource than Principles of Stellar Evolution and Nucleosynthesis by Donald Clayton. The book was originally written in 1968, but it's still relevent -- when other texts cover nuclear reactions, they usually just re-state what's written in Clayton's book (but in less detail).

You grade in this class will be based on your work in homework projects (60%), class talks and participation (20%), and a class project (20%).

A list of topics to be covered in the class appears below. The pdfs of the powerpoint slides for each topic will be linked to these entries before class.

Outline of the Material

• I. Introduction

  • Basic Properties of Stars

  • Review of Thermodynamics (Chapters 4.1, 4.3)

• II. Stars -- The Physics of Stellar Structure (i.e., mass as the independent variable)

  • Equations of Stellar Structure (Chapters 1, 2.1-2.4, 4.4, 10.1)

  • Methods of Energy Transport (Chapters 5.1.1, 5.1.2, 5.2, 6.1)

  • Computing Stellar Models (Chapter 12)

  • Mean Molecular Weight (Chapters 4.2, 14.1, 14.6)

  • Stellar Opacity (Chapters 5.1.3, 17, 22.5)

  • The Equation of State (Chapters 13, 15, 16) 

  • Convection (Chapters 7, 6.3)

  • Boundary Conditions (Chapter 11)

• III. The Physics of Nuclear Reactions (i.e.,time as the independent variable)

  • Nuclear Reaction Rates (Chapters 18.1 - 18.3)

  • Electron Shielding (Chapter 18.4)

  • Following Stellar Nucleosynthesis -- the Proton-Proton Chain (Chapter 18.5.1)

  • The CNO Bi-Cycle (Chapter 18.5.1)

• IV. Simplifications and Approximations

  • The Virial Theorum and Stellar Timescales (Chapters 3, 8.2.1)

  • Polytropes (Chapters 19.1 - 19.3)

  • The Uses of Polytropes (Chapters 19.4 - 19.10, 24.2, 24.3)

  • Homology (Chapters 20.1 - 20.2)

• V. Stellar Evolution

  • Main Sequence Stars (Chapter 22)

  • Solar Neutrinos (Chapter 29.5)

  • Expansion and Stability (Chapters 20.3, 25.3.4, 25.3.5)

  • Post Main Sequence Evolution (Chapters 30, 33)

  • The Giant Branch and Helium Burning (Chapters 18.5.2, 31, 33.4 - 33.6)

  • Giants and Post-Giants (Chapters 9, 31, 33.7)

  • The Asymptotic Giant Branch (Chapters 34)

  • White Dwarfs (Chapters 31.3, 37)

  • Carbon Burning and Nuclear Equilibrium (Chapters 18.5.3, 35, 36)

  • Supernovae (Chapter 36)

  • Heavy Element Nucleosynthesis (Chapter 18.6)

• VI. Additional Topics

  • Pre-Main Sequence Evolution (Chapter 28)

  • Helio and Asteroseimology (Chapter 42)

  • Evolution of Stellar Ensembles

  • Binary Stars and Mass Transfer Binaries

Presentation Topics

• The Initial Mass Function

• Results from Kepler Asteroseismology

• TP-AGB Evolution of Population Synthesis

• Hypernovae

• Population III Stellar Evolution

University Related Material

• Penn State Policy on Masks

• University Mandated Statement on Academic Integrity

• University Mandated Statement on Disability Accomodation

• University Mandated Statement on Counseling and Psychological Services

• University Mandated Statement on Educational Equity and Reporting Bias