There is still much we don’t know about the last stages of stellar evolution, particularly the point at which a star is massive enough to generate a black hole in its final collapse. With his ERC grant under the FISH project, Prof. Friedrich Thielemann has set out to fill this knowledge gap.
Beyond 260-300 M☉ of mass, stars in their final moments have been known to form black holes. Below this mass range, however, things get a bit more unpredictable. From 8 to 140 M☉, core-collapse will lead to a central neuron star or possibly a black hole. The question is, what is the transition region where the formation of a black hole instead of a central neutron star becomes more likely?
Further information: Clearing the thin line between central neutron star and black hole formation