A white dwarf
The white dwarf was a class of stars representing the end stage of evolution for most stars in the universe. These dying stars were the stellar core remnants of red giants that ran out of nuclear fuel and blew most of their gases into space. 40 Eridani B was an example of a white dwarf and was the first of this class to be discovered by Earth astronomers.
In 2364, the SS Tsiolkovsky was observing the formation of a white dwarf star when its crew succumbed to polywater intoxication. The USS Enterprise-D, sent to investigate, was subsequently threatened by a stellar core fragment thrown off by the collapse of the red giant. (TNG: "The Naked Now")
White dwarfs were the only natural source of vertion particles. In 2370, a network emergent circuit nodes aboard the Enterprise-D collected vertions from the white dwarf Tambor Beta-6 to sustain their growth, but the supply from a single star proved insufficient. (TNG: "Emergence")
The USS Protostar being pulled into a white dwarf's gravity well
In 2383, Dal R'El unintentionally guided the USS Protostar to a binary star system consisting of a white dwarf in the final stages of tearing apart its red giant companion. The ship became caught in the white dwarf's gravity well, but managed to escape by riding the shockwave of the star's explosion. (PRO: "Starstruck")
List of named white dwarfs[]
- 40 Eridani B (40 Eridani)
- Alpha Fornacis Bb (Alpha Fornacis)
- Alpha Leonis Ab (Alpha Leonis)
- Epsilon Reticuli B (Epsilon Reticuli)
- Mira B (Omicron Ceti)
- Procyon B (Andorian system)
- Sirius B (Sirius)
- van Maanen's Star (Van Maanen's Star)
| Stellar classification |
|---|
| O • B • A • F • G • K • M (Red dwarf) • Brown dwarf • White dwarf • Red giant |
External links[]
- White dwarf at Memory Beta, the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
- White dwarf at Wikipedia