What is a white dwarf and how do they form?

Main-sequence stars form from clouds of dust and gas drawn together by gravity. How the stars evolve through their lifetime depends on their mass. The most massive stars, with eight times the mass of the sun or more, will never become white dwarfs. read more

If a white dwarf has more than 1.4 times the mass of the Sun squeezing the nuclei, there will be too few orbits available to the electrons (since they cannot travel faster than the speed of light) and the star will collapse until the star rips itself apart in a supernova explosion. read more

A black dwarf is the name given to a white dwarf star that has cooled enough that it is no longer radiating any visible light. White dwarfs are the final remnant of the core collapse death of a star with a starting mass similar to the sun, roughly between 0.5 to 8 solar masses give or take. read more

Becoming a white dwarf star is a fate of moderate mass stars like ours. Medium-sized stars supplying their own hydrogen nuclei, converting them into energy helium, and continuing to survive. Because the heat generated as a result of nuclear fusion in the sun creates an external pressure. read more