massive stars
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What Happens After Helium Fusion?
Back in August — sorry I took so long! — we talked about the helium flash, an explosion that occurs within stars when helium nuclei begin to fuse within a degenerate core. So…this is not what the helium flash would…
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The Adult Life of a Star
Stars are like cars. They need fuel to go. And also like cars, they don’t have an infinite supply. But here’s where the metaphor breaks down. They can never refuel. Yup. That’s right. For their entire lives, stars are stuck…
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Stars: The Limits of “Normal”
How big — or small — can a star get? As with most questions in astronomy, the answer to that is not definitive. But stellar models can give us a pretty good idea. Mathematical models of stars tell us that…
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What Goes On Inside a Star?
Our sun is undoubtedly the star we know the best. It’s only 93 million miles away — which might seem far, but isn’t that large a distance when you realize that the nearest neighboring star is a whole 4.3 light-years…
