Self-gravitating systems are generally thought to behavior non-extensively due to the long-range nature of gravitational forces. We discuss a relation between the nonextensive parameter q of Tsallis statistics, the temperature gradient and the gravitational potential based on the equation of hydrostatic equilibrium for self-gravitating systems. It is suggested that the nonextensive parameter in Tsallis statistics has a clear physical meaning with regard to the non-isothermal nature of the systems with long-range interactions. Tsallis’ equilibrium distribution for the self-gravitating systems describes the property of hydrostatic equilibrium of the systems.
JavaScript is turned off in your web browser. Turn it on to take full advantage of this site, then refresh the page.