Driven by discoveries, and enabled by leaps in technology and imagination, our understanding of the universe has changed dramatically during the course of the last few decades. The fields of astronomy and astrophysics are making new connections to physics, chemistry, biology, and computer science. Based on a broad and comprehensive survey of scientific opportunities, infrastructure, and organization in a national and international context, New Worlds, New Horizons in Astronomy and Astrophysics outlines a plan for ground- and space- based astronomy and astrophysics for the decade of the 2010's. Realizing these scientific opportunities is contingent upon maintaining and strengthening the foundations of the research enterprise including technological development, theory, computation and data handling, laboratory experiments, and human resources. New Worlds, New Horizons in Astronomy and Astrophysics proposes enhancing innovative but moderate-cost programs in space and on the ground that will enable the community to respond rapidly and flexibly to new scientific discoveries. The book recommends beginning construction on survey telescopes in space and on the ground to investigate the nature of dark energy, as well as the next generation of large ground-based giant optical telescopes and a new class of space-based gravitational observatory to observe the merging of distant black holes and precisely test theories of gravity. New Worlds, New Horizons in Astronomy and Astrophysics recommends a balanced and executable program that will support research surrounding the most profound questions about the cosmos. The discoveries ahead will facilitate the search for habitable planets, shed light on dark energy and dark matter, and aid our understanding of the history of the universe and how the earliest stars and galaxies formed. The book is a useful resource for agencies supporting the field of astronomy and astrophysics, the Congressional committees with jurisdiction over those agencies, the scientific community, and the public.

Proceedings of IAU Symposium No. 67 held in Moscow, U.S.S.R., July 29-August 4, 1974

The diverse forms that stars assume in the course of their lives can all be derived from the initial conditions: the mass and the original chemical composition. In this textbook Stars and Stellar Evolution the basic concepts of stellar structure and the main roads of stellar evolution are described. First, the observable parameters are presented, which are based on the radiation emerging from a stellar atmosphere. Then the basic physics is described, such as the physics of gases, radiation transport, and nuclear processes, followed by essential aspects of modelling the structure of stars. After a chapter on star formation, the various steps in the evolution of stars are presented. This leads us to brown dwarfs, to the way a star changes into the red-giant state and numerous other stages of evolution and ultimately to the stellar ashes such as white dwarfs, supernovae and neutron stars. Stellar winds, stellar rotation and convection all in uence the way a star evolves. The evolution of binary stars is included by using several canonical examples in which interactive processes lead to X-ray binaries and supernovae of type Ia. Finally, the consequences of the study of stellar evolution are tied to observed mass and luminosity functions and to the overall evolution of matter in the universe. The authors aim at reaching an understanding of stars and their evolution by both graduate students and astronomers who are not themselves investigating stars. To that end, numerous graphs and sketches, among which the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram is the dominant one, help trace the ways of stellar evolution. Ample references to specialised review articles as well as to relevant research papers are included.

This book was first published in 2007. Variable stars are those that change brightness. Their variability may be due to geometric processes such as rotation, or eclipse by a companion star, or physical processes such as vibration, flares, or cataclysmic explosions. In each case, variable stars provide unique information about the properties of stars, and the processes that go on within them. This book provides a concise overview of variable stars, including a historical perspective, an introduction to stars in general, the techniques for discovering and studying variable stars, and a description of the main types of variable stars. It ends with short reflections about the connection between the study of variable stars, and research, education, amateur astronomy, and public interest in astronomy. This book is intended for anyone with some background knowledge of astronomy, but is especially suitable for undergraduate students and experienced amateur astronomers who can contribute to our understanding of these important stars.

Using fundamental physics, the theory of stellar structure and evolution can predict how stars are born, how their complex internal structure changes, what nuclear fuel they burn, and their ultimate fate. This textbook is a stimulating introduction for undergraduates in astronomy, physics and applied mathematics, taking a course on the physics of stars. It uniquely emphasises the basic physical principles governing stellar structure and evolution. This second edition contains two new chapters on mass loss from stars and interacting binary stars, and new exercises. Clear and methodical, it explains the processes in simple terms, while maintaining mathematical rigour. Starting from general principles, this textbook leads students step-by-step to a global, comprehensive understanding of the subject. Fifty exercises and full solutions allow students to test their understanding. No prior knowledge of astronomy is required, and only a basic background in physics and mathematics is necessary.

The sum of centuries of speculation on the probable course of evolution in stars is discussed by one of the world's greatest astronomers, with a full report of his own conclusions, How long stars exist, the relation of their luminosity to their mass, the evolution of a star in relation to the main sequence, the significance of rotation, are among the crucial problems considered. While the discussion is replete with technical detail, sufficient background is included to enable the amateur astronomer or anyone with scientific training to follow the argument. Originally published in 1950. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

'Understanding Stellar Evolution' is based on a series of graduate-level courses taught at the University of Washington since 2004, and is written for physics and astronomy students and for anyone with a physics background who is interested in stars. It describes the structure and evolution of stars, with emphasis on the basic physical principles and the interplay between the different processes inside stars such as nuclear reactions, energy transport, chemical mixing, pulsation, mass loss, and rotation. Based on these principles, the evolution of low- and high-mass stars is explained from their formation to their death. In addition to homework exercises for each chapter, the text contains a large number of questions that are meant to stimulate the understanding of the physical principles. An extensive set of accompanying lecture slides is available for teachers in both Keynote(R) and PowerPoint(R) formats.