Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics
Scientific paper
Nov 1980
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1980a%26a....91..175k&link_type=abstract
Astronomy and Astrophysics, vol. 91, no. 1-2, Nov. 1980, p. 175-180.
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
99
Atmospheric Circulation, Dynamic Stability, Helium Hydrogen Atmospheres, Main Sequence Stars, Stellar Envelopes, Stellar Structure, Atmospheric Diffusion, Diffusion Coefficient, Molecular Weight, Stellar Atmospheres, Stellar Oscillations
Scientific paper
The time scale of mixing due to thermohaline convection is estimated in the case of a gas in which the molecular weight decreases in the direction of gravity. The mass elements of higher molecular weight which sink into the regions below are hotter in the new surroundings. They therefore radiate into their neighborhood and create a circulation system which mixes the mass element with the surroundings before it has moved over a distance much bigger than its size. The self-destruction reduces the mean free path of the sinking elements and therefore lengthens the time scale during which a (secularly) stable stratification is reached. The results are applied to a main sequence star which during mass exchange has received helium from a helium star companion. It is also applied to the case of the noncentral helium flash of a star of 1.3 solar masses.
Kippenhahn Rudolf
Ruschenplatt G.
Thomas Hans-Christoph
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