Which element's accumulation in the core causes the star to lose its primary energy source during fusion?

Answer

Iron (Fe)

The layered fusion process within a massive star continues, creating progressively heavier elements until the core is predominantly composed of iron ($ ext{Fe}$). Iron represents the universal dead end for standard stellar nucleosynthesis because, unlike all elements lighter than it, fusing iron does not release net energy; instead, the reaction actually requires an input of external energy to proceed. Once the core is saturated with iron, the star instantly loses the thermal pressure output that was counteracting the crushing force of gravity. This cessation of energy generation destroys the hydrostatic equilibrium that maintained the star's structure, triggering the catastrophic gravitational collapse that precedes the supernova explosion.

Which element's accumulation in the core causes the star to lose its primary energy source during fusion?

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astronomystellar evolutionsupernovablack holemassive star