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  • Current Syllabus
  • Advanced Mechanics
  • Electromagnetism
  • The Nature of Light
  • From the Universe to the Atom
  • Pre-2019 Syllabus
    • Space
    • Motors and Generators
    • From Ideas to Implementation
    • Astrophysics
  • Other Subjects
  • EasyChem – HSC Chemistry
  • EasyHSC – HSC Business Studies
  • EasyBio – HSC Biology
  • Search

Stellar Evolution

Astrophysics > Stellar Evolution

Stars evolve and eventually ‘die’

Students learn to:

  • describe the processes involved in stellar formation
  • outline the key stages in a star’s life in terms of the physical processes involved
  • describe the types of nuclear reactions involved in Main-Sequence and post-Main Sequence stars
  • discuss the synthesis of elements in stars by fusion
  • explain how the age of a globular cluster can be determined from its zero-age main sequence plot for a H-R diagram
  • explain the concept of star death in relation to:
    • planetary nebula
    • supernovae
    • white dwarfs
    • neutron stars/pulsars
    • black holes

Students:

  • present information by plotting Hertzsprung-Russell diagrams for: nearby or brightest stars, stars in a young open cluster, stars in a globular cluster
  • analyse information from a H-R diagram and use available evidence to determine the characteristics of a star and its evolutionary stage
  • present information by plotting on a H-R diagram the pathways of stars of 1, 5 and 10 solar masses during their life cycle

Extract from Physics Stage 6 Syllabus (Amended October 2002). © 2009, Board of Studies NSW.

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