What element's radioactive decay primarily powers the visible light curve of Type II supernovae over subsequent weeks and months?
Answer
Nickel-56 decaying into Cobalt-56, and then into stable Iron-56.
While the initial energy driving the explosion comes from neutrinos, the sustained, weeks-to-months-long brightness observed in the light curve of events like Type II supernovae is powered by radioactive decay happening within the newly synthesized ejecta cloud. The crucial element created in significant quantities during the shock passage is Nickel-56. This isotope is unstable and undergoes radioactive decay first into Cobalt-56, which itself is unstable and decays further into stable Iron-56. The energy released during this chain of decay heats the expanding material, causing it to glow visibly over the extended period following the initial blast.
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