Pulsars and Neutron Stars debunked?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the physical feasibility of neutron stars and pulsars, particularly focusing on their rapid rotation rates and the forces involved. Participants explore the implications of centrifugal forces versus gravitational forces in the context of these celestial objects.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Technical explanation

Main Points Raised

  • One participant questions how neutron stars can exist given their rapid rotation rates, drawing an analogy to centrifugal forces experienced on a merry-go-round.
  • Another participant explains that the immense surface gravity of neutron stars, approximately 100 billion times that of Earth, counteracts the centrifugal forces, allowing them to remain intact.
  • A different participant emphasizes that the mass of neutron stars exerts significant gravitational force, which is crucial in holding them together, and compares them to black holes in terms of gravity strength.
  • Concerns are raised about the seriousness of the initial question, with some participants expressing skepticism about the inquiry's intent.
  • One participant asserts the reality of neutron stars and pulsars, suggesting that the discussion should be concluded.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express disagreement regarding the initial skepticism about the existence of neutron stars and pulsars. While some defend their reality and the physics behind them, others question the motivations behind the inquiry, indicating a lack of consensus on the seriousness of the initial claims.

Contextual Notes

Participants reference the balance between centrifugal and gravitational forces without resolving the complexities involved in the calculations or the limits of current understanding of neutron stars.

Elbert Anstein
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Now kindly pardon my ignorance but I hope one of you can explain to me how this can be possible.

A rotating neutron star or pulsar have been observed to spin at between 10 to 700 times per second. Now before I proceed further I like to draw your memories back to the merry go round we played as children. Some of us kids would hang on tight especially the boys who wanted to show off and the other boys and kids would spin the wheel. As the wheel revolved faster and faster the kids would one by one get thrown off due to the massive centrifugal forces acting on them.

These were just small merry go rounds of perhaps 3 meters in diameter and these spun even at the very fastest of around 1/2 round per secon. These already produced massive forces to fling us off. Now a neutron star may be 20km in diameter, the mass play no part in holding it together as the faster an object spins, the mass itself is acting in an outward direction increasing the inertia and being already in a rotational spin, these stars would literally fling itself out of existence as it disintegrates.

How can such objects possibly by the laws of physics be physically possible? Are these stars real or are they the invention of some scientist who is trying to wave away the problem by coming up with insane excuses.
 
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The surface gravity of a neutron star is huge - roughly 100 billion times the surface gravity of the Earth. So, while the centrifugal force is trying to pull the star apart, the huge gravitational forces are holding it together. These things are well understood and easy to calculate. Eventually, if the star spins fast enough, it will fly apart as you said, but this maximum rotation rate is above 1000 revolutions per second.
 
Of course the mass continues to hold it together, all that mass will continue to exert gravity, and considering the [Newtonian] formula for the attraction of gravity is an inverse square of the distance, could you imagine how powerful gravity would be if you took all that mass and compressed it to 20 miles? There exist objects with gravity so stupendously strong that nothing could ever escape it, regardless of how fast it spun. They're called black holes and they make neutron stars look downright puny.

Oh also, there are dozens of known neutron stars and pulsars. We can see them with telescopes.
 
Elbert Anstein said:
Are these stars real or are they the invention of some scientist who is trying to wave away the problem by coming up with insane excuses.

Is this question serious or just some crackpot nutjob out to push his own "theory"?

You might want to lose the 'tude, bro.
 
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Elbert Anstein said:
Are these stars real or are they the invention of some scientist who is trying to wave away the problem by coming up with insane excuses.

They're real. Thread closed.
 

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