Supermagnetic Stars May Form from Mergers

The most magnetic stars may have their origins in merging stars, a new study finds.

more….

Tau.Neutrino said:

Supermagnetic Stars May Form from Mergers

The most magnetic stars may have their origins in merging stars, a new study finds.

more….

(Clenches teeth). Actually … I doubt that.

The present theory is as follows. Main sequence stars may be classified as either fast rotators or slow rotators. The Sun is a slow rotator, and it has been surmised that that is because a lot of the Solar system’s angular momentum is tied up in the giant planets.

I tend to think that the star’s rotation speed is a given by turbulence in the gas cloud from which it was formed. The magnetic field depends on both the rotation speed and the mass, because different masses give different layers at different depths.

Collisions between stars are very rare, generally confined to regions where there is a very high star density, such as globular nebulae.

With me so far.

Now, when it comes to magnetars. First of all, these only come from massive stars that have gone through supernovae, and when it comes to the physics of supernovae, all bets are off. But it comes down to a magnification of angular momentum during the collapse stage. Ordinary pulsars don’t have this magnification, so “only” rotate up to a thousand times a second.

But the point is that none of these processes require star mergers. And once a pulsar or magnetar is formed, it would be extremely unlikely to change its inherent nature.

Perhaps I’ve missed the point.