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It isn't; heavier elements can be, and are, produced by DYING stars.

The reason is the "packing fraction curve". As atomic nuclei would fuse together within the cores of normal stars, hydrogen atoms as "fuel" would fuse into helium "ash"; when the star became old, the core of the stars would heat up and become more dense as the star began to collapse into itself. The denser stellar core material would heat up and begin to fuse into heavier elements; carbon, oxygen, and heavier elements, releasing a little energy every time a new atom was formed by fusing together lighter ones - UNTIL they got to iron.

Once you get to iron, any additional fusion sucks energy OUT of the star's core, and every fusion from there on sucks even MORE energy out of the star, leading to the star's quick collapse. This is one scenario for how a "nova" might occur.

If a star EXPLODES in a supernova, then there's LOTS of energy to crash even heavy elements together into even HEAVIER elements. So all of the gold, uranium, lead, and every atom heavier than iron, was formed in a supernova explosion.

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Q: Why is iron the heaviest element that can be produced by star?
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Related questions

What is the heaviest element that a star can produce through fusion before going supernova?

The heaviest element that can be produced prior to supernova is Iron (Fe).


Is iron a compound mixture element?

Iron is an element, and is the heaviest element that may be made by fusion in a Star such as our Sun.


Is iron compound mixture elements?

Iron is an element, and is the heaviest element that may be made by fusion in a Star such as our Sun.


Is iron the heaviest element made in abundance in massive stars?

Iron is the heaviest element made in the bowels of any star with the exception of a supernova explosion. All natural elements heavier than iron come from one of those.


What is the heaviest element that can be made by normal processes inside a star?

In very massive stars, Iron is sometimes generated.


What is the heaviest element a star with a mass of 1 solar mass can fuse?

Helium.


Is iron a element compound or mixture?

Iron is a chemical element. It is not a compound or a mixture. An element is a substance composed of only one type of atom. In the case of iron, it consists entirely of iron atoms. Iron is one of the 118 known chemical elements and is represented by the symbol "Fe" on the periodic table. It is a fundamental building block of matter and cannot be broken down into simpler substances through chemical reactions.


Why is iron the heaviest element that can be formed in stars?

It isn't. Heavier elements are formed in stars as well. Iron is basically the heaviest element for which energy can be gained. When converting iron into heavier elements, energy is lost. However, this doesn't stop supernovae, at a temperature of about one gigakelvin (a billion degrees), to form heavier elements. In fact, the interior of stars is practically the ONLY way such elements can be formed.


The final core element for a massive star is?

IRON


What does lead mean in science?

Lead is a heavy metal. An element. Atomic number 82 (has 82 protons in nucleus). Symbol is Pb, which comes from its Latin name plumbum. It is also the most nuclear stable element. That is, it is the end product of fusion. It is the heaviest element that is produced under normal fusion conditions in a star. Heavier elements (produced usually in supernova) decay usually into lead.


Were our iron atoms produced before our sun existed?

Yes, Iron atoms were produced via fission in the core of an ancient star that has died. We are all stardust.


Can the sun produce elements heavier than oxygen?

The heaviest element that our Sun produces is probably silicon; the core temperature and pressure would need to be MUCH higher to produce heavier elements. The heaviest element that can be produced in ANY star is iron.The reason for this is something called the "packing fraction curve". As light elements are fused into heavier elements, they release energy; this is how the Sun and other stars work, by fusing hydrogen into helium. Toward the end of a star's life, the temperature and pressure increase enough to fuse helium into carbon, and then carbon into heavier elements, but each stage releases less and less energy. Finally, when elements fuse into iron, you can get no more energy out. To fuse iron into heavier things, or anything into elements heavier than iron, you must put energy IN. When a star begins fusing iron into heavy elements, it suddenly stops producing energy to support the star against the tremendous gravity, but instead starts sucking energy OUT of the core of the star to power fusion!This loss of energy from the core of the star causes a sudden and catastrophic implosion as the core of the star collapses the core into a black hole or neutron star, and the outer layers of the star are compressed and expelled in a shock wave that creates gigatons of heavy elements and throws the remainder of the star's mass into space; a supernova explosion.So, nothing heavier than iron can be produced in a normal star; heavier elements are only created in supernovas.