Phrase guide

nuclear pasta

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

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Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

A type of degenerate matter found within the crusts of neutron stars, where the competition between nuclear attraction and Coulomb repulsion forces of similar magnitude allows for the formation of a variety of complex structures assembled from neutrons and protons.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

Topics: astrophysics

Examples

  • Watanabe, Gentaro; Iida, Kei; Sato, Katsuhiko (23 August 2000), “Thermodynamic properties of nuclear "pasta" in neutron star crusts”, in Nuclear Physics A, volume 676, numbers 1-4, →DOI, pages 455–473

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From the resemblance of its phases to various types of pasta.