New estimate of the mixing length and convective overshooting in massive stars

Journal Article · Sun Feb 01 04:00:00 EST 1987 · Astrophys. J.; (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1086/165008· OSTI ID:6468837

Cloutman, L D

A new approach to estimating the length scale of turbulent motions in convection zones of stars is presented. It is based on a statistical model of turbulence specialized to the stellar interior. It is predicted that the length scale of turbulence is proportional to the turbulence Mach number and to the geometric mean of the pressure scale height and a length scale associated with variations in the strength of the buoyancy forces. This model is applied to a 15.57 solar mass star, and it predicts strong overshooting in a layer up to several solar masses thick outside the convective core. It produces significant increases in the core hydrogen-burning lifetime and in the luminosity after core hydrogen exhaustion, and it removes the conditions that produce semiconvection. 28 references.

• Research Organization: Los Alamos National Lab., NM
• OSTI ID: 6468837
• Journal Information: Astrophys. J.; (United States), Journal Name: Astrophys. J.; (United States) Vol. 313; ISSN ASJOA
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

640102* -- Astrophysics & Cosmology-- Stars & Quasi-Stellar
Radio & X-Ray Sources
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
CONVECTION
ELEMENTS
ENERGY
ENERGY TRANSFER
HEAT TRANSFER
HYDROGEN
HYDROGEN BURNING
KINETIC ENERGY
MASS
MASS TRANSFER
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
NONMETALS
STAR BURNING
STARS
TURBULENCE