Phases of Dense Matter in Compact Stars

Astrophysicists distinguish between three different types of compact stars. These are white dwarfs, neutron stars, and black holes. The former contain matter in one of the densest forms found in the Universe. This talk discusses the role of strangeness for compact star phenomenology. Strangeness is carried by hyperons, mesons, H-dibaryons, and strange quark matter, and may leave its mark in the masses, radii, cooling behavior, surface composition and the spin evolution of compact stars.