Editing Magnetar (section)

==Formation==
When, in a [[Supernova]], a star collapses to a neutron star, its magnetic field increases dramatically in strength. Halving a linear dimension increases the magnetic field fourfold. Duncan and Thompson calculated that the magnetic field of a neutron star, normally an already enormous 108 [[Tesla]]s could, through the [[Dynamo Theory|Dynamo Mechanism]], grow even larger, to more than 1011 teslas (or 1015 [[Gauss]]). The result is a magnetar.
The supernova might lose 10% of its mass in the explosion. In order for such large stars (10 to 30 solar masses) not to collapse directly into a [[Black Hole]], they have to shed a larger proportion of their mass— perhaps another 80%. It is estimated that about one in ten supernova explosions results in a magnetar rather than a more standard neutron star or [[Pulsar]].

[[Category: Stars and Stellar Phenomenon]][[ Category: Science]]