An Etymological Dictionary of Astronomy and Astrophysics

The upper bound to the mass of a → neutron star, the mass beyond which the pressure of neutron → degenerate matter is not capable of preventing the → gravitational collapse which will lead to the formation of a → black hole. Modern estimates range from approximately 1.5 to 3.0 → solar masses. The uncertainty in the value reflects the fact that the → equation of state for → overdense matter is not well-known.

See also: Oppenheimer, J.R., Volkoff, G.M., 1939, Physical Review 55, 374. Named after Robert Oppenheimer (1904-1967), an American theoretical physicist, and
George Volkoff (1914-2000), a Canadian physicist, who first calculated this limit.
Oppenheimer is widely known for his role as the scientific director of the Manhattan Project,
the World War II effort to develop the first nuclear weapons at the secret
Los Alamos laboratory in New Mexico; → limit.