What elements are primarily created during the Carbon Burning stage following helium exhaustion?
Answer
Neon, sodium, and magnesium
Once the supply of helium fuel is exhausted in the core, the core contracts, increasing the temperature and pressure until the conditions are met for the next stage of fusion. During the Carbon Burning phase, carbon nuclei fuse together to form progressively heavier products. The text specifies that this process yields neon, sodium, and magnesium. This layered synthesis continues sequentially, with each subsequent stage occurring over a drastically shorter timescale as the core temperature continues to climb, moving the star rapidly toward the iron limit.
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