- Chandrasekhar , Subrahmanyan
- (1910–1995) Indian–American astrophysicistChandrasekhar, who was born in Lahore, which is now in Pakistan, studied at the Presidency College, Madras, gaining his MA in 1930. He then went to Cambridge University, England, where in 1933 he both obtained his PhD and was elected to a fellowship. In 1936 he moved to America and has worked since 1937 at the University of Chicago and the Yerkes Observatory, serving as the Morton D. Hull Distinguished Service professor of Theoretical Astrophysics from 1952 to 1986, and as professor emeritus from 1986. He became an American citizen in 1953.Chandrasekhar's major fields of study were stellar evolution and stellar structure and the processes of energy transfer within stars. It was known that stars could end their life either dramatically and explosively as a supernova or as an extremely small dense star of low luminosity known as a white dwarf. But what decided the particular path a star took was answered by Chandrasekhar in his Introduction to the Study of Stellar Structure (1939). He showed that when a star has exhausted its nuclear fuel, an inward gravitational collapse will begin. This will eventually be halted in most stars by the outward pressure exerted by a degenerate gas, i.e. a gas that is completely ionized, with the electrons stripped away from the atomic nuclei, and that is very highly compressed. The star will therefore have shrunk into an object composed of material so dense that a matchbox of it would weigh many tons.Chandrasekhar showed that such a star would have the unusual property that the larger its mass, the smaller its radius. There will therefore be a point at which the mass of a star is too great for it to evolve into a white dwarf. He calculated this mass to be 1.4 times the mass of the Sun. This has since become known as theChandrasekhar limit. A star lying above this limit must either lose mass before it can become a white dwarf or take a different evolutionary path. In support of Chandrasekhar's theoretical work, it has been established that all known white dwarfs fall within the predicted limit.In the 1970s Chandrasekhar devoted much time to the mathematical theory of black holes. He later made a detailed study of Newton's work and published his results in his Newton's Principia for the Common Reader.For his numerous contributions to astrophysics, Chandrasekhar shared the 1983 Nobel Prize for physics with William Fowler.
Scientists. Academic. 2011.
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Chandrasekhar, Subrahmanyan — born Oct. 19, 1910, Lahore, India died Aug. 21, 1995, Chicago, Ill., U.S. Indian born U.S. astrophysicist. He left the University of Cambridge to join the staff of the University of Chicago in 1938. He determined that, following its red giant… … Universalium
Chandrasekhar,Subrahmanyan — Chan·dra·se·khar (shän drə sāʹkär, chŭn drə shāʹkər), Subrahmanyan. 1910 1995. Indian born American astrophysicist. He shared a 1983 Nobel Prize for research on the evolution of stars. * * * … Universalium
Chandrasekhar, Subrahmanyan — ► (1910 95) Astrofísico estadounidense. Fue premio Nobel de Física en 1983, compartido con William A. Fowler, por sus investigaciones sobre la evolución y estructura de los astros. * * * (19 oct. 1910, Lahore, India–21 ago. 1995, Chicago, Ill.,… … Enciclopedia Universal
Chandrasekhar — Subrahmanyan … Scientists
Chandrasekhar — Chandrasekhar, Subrahmanyan … Enciclopedia Universal
Subrahmanyan Chandresekhar — Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar (19 octobre 1910 21 août 1995) est un astrophysicien et un mathématicien indien, né à Lahore, dans la province du Punjab, dans les Indes britanniques (maintenant Pakistan) et mort à Chicago.… … Wikipédia en Français
Subrâhmanyan Chandrashekhara — Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar (19 octobre 1910 21 août 1995) est un astrophysicien et un mathématicien indien, né à Lahore, dans la province du Punjab, dans les Indes britanniques (maintenant Pakistan) et mort à Chicago.… … Wikipédia en Français
Chandrasekhar-Masse — Chandrasekhar Grenze Die Chandrasekhar Grenze ist die theoretische obere Grenze für die Masse eines Weißen Zwergsterns, die von dem amerikanischen Astrophysiker und Nobelpreisträger Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar hergeleitet wurde. Unabhängig von… … Deutsch Wikipedia
Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar — For other people of the same name, see Chandrasekhar. In this Indian name, the name Subrahmanyan is a patronymic, not a family name, and the person should be referred to by the given name, Chandrasekhar. Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar … Wikipedia
Chandrasekhar limit — /shahn dreuh say kahr/, Astron. the mass limit above which a star has too much mass to become a white dwarf after gravitational collapse, approximately 1.44 solar masses. [1975 80; after U.S. astrophysicist Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar (born 1910) … Universalium