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There are several different types of fusion which can occur in stars at different points in their life cycle depending on their mass and metallicity ("metal" means something different to astronomers than it does to most people).
In general, and tremendously simplified, the most common net result of stellar fusion is that one starts with protons (hydrogen nuclei) and ends with alpha particles (helium-4 nuclei). However, there are also (lots of) other things going on, read on if you're interested in more details.
In our own Sun, the most common type of fusion is called the proton-proton chain reaction. In the most common branch of this process, two hydrogen atoms fuse to form deuterium, which fuses with another hydrogen to form helium-3, and then two helium-3 atoms fuse to form helium-4, releasing two hydrogen atoms in the process.
(Note: everywhere I've said "atoms" above I really mean "nuclei"; at the temperatures and pressures required, atoms don't actually exist as independent entities and it's more of a plasma of nuclei and free electrons).
Also, the last step in the process above is called the PPI branch and happens at temperatures of about ten to fourteen million kelvins. At 14-23 MK, the PPII branch is predominant, and involves a helium-3 nucleus fusing with a helium-4 nucleus to form beryllium-7, which then absorbs an electron to form lithium-7, which fuses with a proton (hydrogen nucleus) to form two helium-4 nuclei.
Above 23 MK, the PPIII branch dominates, which again involves fusion of helium-3 and helium-4 to make beryllium-7, which then fuses with a proton to form boron-8, which undergoes beta decay to beryllium-8, which is unstable and immediately splits into two helium-4 nuclei.
There's another branch which has been predicted but never directly observed (PPIV, the fusion of helium-3 with a proton to directly form helium-4). If this does occur in the Sun, it's only in very small amounts (less than about 0.3 parts per million).
In stars more than about 1.3 times the mass of the Sun (and to some extent in less massive stars, including the Sun itself) there's another process called the CNO cycle which has the same net result (protons are consumed and alpha particles are produced). I'm not going to go into the details, because this answer is already long enough, but if you're interested you could look up "CNO Cycle" on, say, Wikipedia.
Heavier nuclei (up to nickel-56) are built by the alpha process. Three alpha particles (helium-4 nuclei) can fuse to form carbon-12 (technically, two first fuse to form beryllium-8, but beryllium-8 is so unstable that unless it immediately fuses with another alpha particle it will just decay back into two helium-4 nuclei again). After that, the elements are built up by the addition of successive alpha particles:
carbon-12 + alpha -> oxygen-16
oxygen-16 + alpha -> neon-20
neon-20 + alpha -> magnesium-24
magnesium-24 + alpha -> silicon-28
silicon-28 + alpha -> sulfur-32
sulfur-32 + alpha -> argon-36
argon-36 + alpha -> calcium-40
calcium-40 + alpha -> titanium-44
titanium-44 + alpha -> chromium-48
chromium-48 + alpha -> iron-52
iron-52 + alpha -> nickel-56
Each of these requires higher and higher temperatures to sustain, so only the highest-mass stars reach this point. Above this the process falls apart, since zinc-60 would be the next product, but this fusion reaction is endergonic (absorbs energy rather than releasing it) and the core of the star collapses instead.
Heat and pressure from the collapse rebounds in a supernova event, which has plenty of energy floating around and can form all kinds of weird heavy nuclei. Supernova explosions are basically the source of all nuclei heavier than nickel.
What else can I help you with?
Do stars give off light as a part of a nuclear fusion reaction in which helium atoms are split into hydrogen atoms?
No. In a fusion reaction, a heavier element is made of a lighter pair by "gluing" them together in a fusion reaction. When we split an atom, that's called atom splitting, or sometimes fission, not fusion. They are opposites. Stars give off light, but the primary fuel in their fusion engines is hydrogen, which they convert into helium. As the hydrogen burns out, the star begins making helium into carbon.
What is a fusion?
1.)A fusion basically is what gives your parts such as you body, the Sun, Neon's glow, and to not be blind. Without this thing, we wouldn't be alive. Fusion can protect us from cancer, blindnesss, parilaization, and sickness, 2.)The fusion when two matters combine and become one new object like if there is two atoms and then they combine together, it forms a larger, bigger, stronger, atom.
Fission and fusion of nuclear power plant?
Fission is the splitting of an atom, fusion is the joining of 2 atoms into one. In most fission, neutrons are bomabarded at the nucleus of uranium or plutonium and this causes a ripple effect of more neutons being released from the fuel. The process generates large amounts of heat which is either used for destruction or steam engines. Fusion most often occurs with 2 Hydrogens being fused together to form helium. Deuterium (Hydrogen with a neutron and proton instead of just a proton) and tritium (one proton and two neutrons) are high energy atoms that are used in testing nuclear fusion. Our star (the sun) is based, like most stars, on Hydrogen being fused to generate heat and Helium.
What are similarities between fusion and fission?
Binary fission is the form of asexual reproduction and cell division used by prokaryotic organisms such as bacteria or archaea. Similar Organism splits into smaller parts, occur in single celled organisms.
What causes an iconic bond?
An ionic bond is primarily caused by the electrostatic attraction between oppositely charged ions. This occurs when one atom, usually a metal, donates one or more electrons to another atom, typically a nonmetal, resulting in the formation of positively charged cations and negatively charged anions. The strong attraction between these charged ions leads to the formation of a stable ionic compound. Factors such as electronegativity differences between the atoms and their positions in the periodic table also play a significant role in the formation of ionic bonds.
What is the differenc between nuclear fusion and nuclear fission?
Fusion means to combine lighter atoms into a heavier atom. Fission means to split a heavy atom into lighter atoms.
What is created when two hydrogen atoms fused together?
Hydrogen atoms have one proton in their nuclei. When two hydrogen atoms fuse together they make one helium atom that contains two protons in its nucleus. This is called nuclear fusion, which powers the stars in the universe.
What is the process of two atoms combine to make one atom?
Fusion
What happens when an atom combines with another atom?
uncomplete atoms attract each other sort of like a magnet. when they 'stick' together they are then called a molecule but there are atoms that do not form together because they are complete. they are called Noble Gases.
What is a sentence for the word inter fusion?
The inter fusion of two helium atoms creates a hydrogen atom. This is an example using inter fusion.
When two atoms combine to form a larger atom that process is what?
Atomic Fusion
What would cause the shape of a molecule to be tetrahedral?
A molecule with four bonded atoms and no lone pairs on the central atom will have a tetrahedral shape. This occurs when the central atom is bonded to four other atoms, resulting in equal distances between the atoms, leading to a tetrahedral shape due to the arrangement of electron pairs around the central atom.
Is fusion a type of reactor?
Fusion is the combining of two atoms to make one, fission is the splitting of an atom to make two.
What process has occurred when two atoms combine to form a new atom?
When two atoms combine to form a new atom, a chemical reaction has occurred. During this process, the atoms can share, gain, or lose electrons to achieve a more stable configuration, forming a chemical bond. The resulting new atom may have different properties than the original atoms.
When two atoms combine to form a larger atom releasing energy.?
Nuclear fusion
The mass of an atom aftre it under goes fission or fusion?
The mass of an atom after undergoing fission or fusion will be less than the original mass because some of the mass is converted into energy according to Einstein's mass-energy equivalence (E=mc^2). In fission, the total mass of the products is less than the original atom due to the release of energy. In fusion, the combined mass of the reactants will be slightly more than the mass of the resulting atom due to the energy input required.
Which atoms does ionic bonding occur between?
Ionic bonding occurs between atoms that have significantly different electronegativities, resulting in the transfer of electrons from one atom to another. This typically occurs between metals and nonmetals, such as sodium (Na) and chlorine (Cl) in sodium chloride (NaCl).
