Why are accretion disks around neutron stars or black holes significantly hotter than those around protostars?
Answer
The immense gravitational pull releases vast energy as gas accelerates and rubs together
The immense gravitational field near a compact object causes the infalling gas to move at very high speeds. The friction generated by this acceleration and rubbing releases vast amounts of energy, resulting in extremely high temperatures and X-ray emission.
Related Questions
What is the primary driver distinguishing cosmic accretion from terrestrial forms of accumulation?What physical principle causes infalling material around a protostar to flatten into a rotating structure?What term describes the observational signature of vigorous accretion onto a supermassive black hole at a galactic center?Why are accretion disks around neutron stars or black holes significantly hotter than those around protostars?In the context of plate tectonics, what is the term for the mass of material piled up onto the overriding plate during subduction?What mechanism allows matter to spiral inward toward the central object within an astrophysical accretion disk?What geological example illustrates accretion as a reciprocal process to erosion along a river channel?Compared to nuclear fusion, how efficient is the energy conversion process during accretion onto compact stellar remnants?What specific type of object is cited as an example of intense gravitational accretion occurring in a binary system?What is the fundamental, universal prerequisite for accretion to occur, regardless of scale?