When the temperature in the core of a star reaches about 100 million degrees, three colliding helium nuclei can fuse to form a carbon nucleus. This set of reactions is also called the triple alpha process.
Helium burning occurs after the star has evolved off the Main Sequence, when it is a red giant.
|
|
|
|
|
| [back to the topics page] | [back to astro 201 home page] | [back to astro FAQ home page] | [back to current A201 FAQ home page] |