ISBN: | 978-5-5122-3987-2 |
High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! The Eddington luminosity (also referred to as the Eddington limit) in a star is defined as the point where the gravitational force inwards equals the continuum radiation force outwards, assuming hydrostatic equilibrium and spherical symmetry. When exceeding the Eddington luminosity, a star would initiate a very intense continuum-driven stellar wind from its outer layers. Since most massive stars have luminosities far below the Eddington luminosity, however, their winds are mostly driven by the less intense line absorption.