Can a collision with a neutron star make a planet via the can-o-snakes method?

Simplistically, a neutron star is a celestial body with enormous mass crushed into a small volume. That crushing force is gravity and the result, one might think, is atoms packed much more closely than they want to be.

Background rumination in question form

Is it a true or false premise that the condition of the atoms at that point is not permanent? If you scooped out a cup of neutron star matter and tossed it a long distance away from the star... would it expand to something approximating its original density? (Yeah... not unlike opening a can-o-snakes).

The actual question

Assuming this is believable, what mass + force could be brought against a neutron star to cause it to shatter such that the resulting debris does not fall back together quickly (quickly <= 100,000 years) but allows the mass to expand — thereby forming planets?

(If this works, it would be a cool source of rogue planets.)

posted about 6 years ago

JBH‭

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