Animation Details

The vertical axis extends from the surface of a neutron star through the accreted envelope, to a height of 1.5 km. The horizontal axis is a 2 km portion along the surface of the neutron star. In the animation, a green line marks a helium mass fraction of 0.95, which will separate the fuel and ash as the detonation progresses. A light blue line marks a nickel mass fraction of 0.95, showing the interface between the accreted envelope and the underlying neutron star. Finally, a dark blue line marks a density of 10 g/cm3, giving a rough measure of the location of the original surface of the envelope. The colors represent the density and spans 13 orders of magnitude, from the dense material at the base of the envelope (10**8 g/cm3) colored red to the uppermost fluff, with a density of 10**-5 g/cm3, colored white.