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M4111 The sun

Aims: To extend the students' knowledge of stellar structure and evolution, to examine the nature of variable stars through the theory of linear nonradial pulsation, to introduce helioseismology and asteroseismology and indicate how theory and observation can be combined to probe stellar interiors.

Syllabus: Part 1:Solving the equations of stellar structure, hydrogen burning, new physics, ionization, degeneracy, pulsation driving, helium burning massive stars, blue loops and Cepheids, helium burning low mass stars, core He flash, semi-convection, RR Lyrae stars,
Part 2: Basic equations of adiabatic oscillations, oscillation equations, spherical harmonics, eigenfunctions and orthogonality, p and g modes, physical interpretation and trapping of modes, numerical solution, non-adiabatic oscillations, basic equations, weakly non-adiabatic oscillations, , , and mechanisms, helio- and asteroseismology, the pulsating sun, forward problem, overview of the inverse problem, asteroseismology,

Recommended texts:
Bowers, R. and Deeming, T., Stars, Astrophysics I., Jones & Bartlett, 1984.
Cox, J.P., Theory of stellar pulsation, Princeton U Press, 1980.
Kippenhahn, R. and Weigert, A., Stellar structure and evolution, Springer-Verlag, 1990.
Unno, W. et al, Nonradial oscillations of stars 2nd ed., U Tokyo Press, 1989.

Lecturer: Paul Cally



 
For current students