What transient structure do low-mass stars shed before becoming a white dwarf?
Answer
Planetary nebulae.
Stars whose initial mass is significantly lower than the threshold required for a core collapse—like the Sun—experience a gradual demise rather than a violent explosion. As these stars exhaust the fuel in their core, they expand greatly into red giants. Subsequently, they gently shed their expanded outer layers of gas into space. This expelled material forms expanding, often beautifully structured shells of glowing gas known collectively as planetary nebulae. Once these outer layers have drifted away, the remaining super-dense, hot stellar core contracts and cools down over eons to become the final stellar remnant, the white dwarf.
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