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Stellar Encounters in Dense Systems

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 May 2016

Melvyn B. Davies*
Affiliation:
Institute of Astronomy Cambridge, UK

Extract

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The number density of stars in the solar neighbourhood is sufficiently low that encounters between two stars will be extremely rare. However, in the cores of globular clusters, and glactic nuclei, number densities are sufficiently high (∼ 105 stars/pc 3 in some systems) that encounter timescales can be comparable, or even less than, the age of the universe. In other words, a large fraction of the stars in these systems will have suffered from at least one close encounter or collision in their lifetime.

Information

Type
August 25: X Ray and Compact Objects in Globular Clusters
Copyright
Copyright © Kluwer 1996