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  • Elements1 are formed deep within the cores of certain types of star2. Find out more in this interactive.

    “We’re literally the ashes of long dead stars,” says Sir Martin Rees, Professor of Cosmology and Astrophysics, University of Cambridge. As stars evolved3 in space after the Big Bang4, nuclear reactions occurred that transformed hydrogen5 and helium6, formed as a result of the Big Bang, into the elements as we know them.

    Click on each stage of the star life cycle and discover how the elements that we are all made up of were created.

    Transcript

    Stellar nebula

    Moments after the Big Bang, energy begins to condense into matter7, protons and neutrons are formed, and then the first element8 (hydrogen) is formed. Hundreds of millions of years later in stellar nebulae, the hydrogen gas clouds coalesce and, under gravity9, form protostars. Nuclear fusion10 processes begin converting hydrogen into helium. One example of a stellar nursery is the Eagle Nebula.

    Acknowledgement: T.A.Rector & B.A.Wolpa, NOAO/AURA/NSF

    Average star

    An average or medium star is less than 3 times the mass11 of the Sun. Stars are powered by nuclear fusion in their cores, mostly converting hydrogen into helium and liberating tremendous amounts of energy.

    Acknowledgement: JPL-Caltech National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

    Massive star

    Massive stars, more than 3 times the mass of the Sun, mostly convert hydrogen into helium. Rigel is the brightest star in the constellation12 called Orion and one of the brightest stars in the sky. It is a blue (very hot) supergiant, over 100 times bigger than the Sun.

    Acknowledgement: Glen Youman

    Red giant

    As medium sized stars exhaust their hydrogen content, they expand up to 100 times their original size to become red giants. The nuclear fusion reactions occurring within a red giant13 are H→ He and He→ C. Our Sun will follow this path over the next 5 billion years. This red giant is Aldebaran in the constellation Taurus.

    Acknowledgement: NASA

    Super Red giant

    Supergiants are the element factories of our universe14. The nuclear fusion reactions occurring are H→ He, He→ C, C→ Ne, Ne→ O, O→ Si and Si→ Fe.

    Betelgeuse in the constellation Orion is a super red giant. It is about 20 times as massive as the Sun. The lifetime of this type of star is relatively short by comparison with the Sun – millions of years as opposed to billions of years.

    Acknowledgement: A.Dupree and R.Gillard (CfA), R.Gilliland (STScI)

    Planetary nebula

    A planetary nebula15 is a huge shell of gas and dust ejected during the last stage (red giant) of the life of a medium star. Elements such as helium, carbon16, oxygen17, nitrogen18, neon19 and smaller amounts of heavier elements are present. Planetary nebulae play an important part in the chemical evolution of the galaxy20, allowing these elements to be returned to the interstellar medium. The remains of the carbon core of a red giant evolve21 into a white dwarf22 star. The Eskimo Nebula in Gemini is a good example.

    Acknowledgement: Andrew Fruchter, STScI Andrew Fruchter

    Supernova

    From the cataclysmic explosion of the supernova23, the heavier elements form.

    The supernova is the final stage in the life of massive stars. The outer region of the star collapses and it Instantly rebounds off the inner core in a cataclysmic explosion. The extremely high level of energy allows further fusion reactions to occur, producing heavy elements like gold24, silver25 and uranium. The supernova image shows Tycho’s Supernova Remnant – this expanding gas cloud is all that remains after a star went supernova. In 1572, Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe noticed the presence of a ‘new’ bright light in the night sky and recorded its position and intensity in his writings. It has been named in his honour.

    Acknowledgement: APOD/NASA/CXC/SAO

    White dwarf

    A white dwarf is a small, very dense, hot star that is made mostly of carbon. These faint stars are what remain after a red giant star loses its outer layers. They are about the size of the Earth and will eventually lose their heat26 to become a cold, dark black dwarf. The sun will eventually turn into a white dwarf and then a black dwarf.

    Acknowledgement: NASA and H.Richer (University of British Columbia)

    Neutron star

    Stars with a mass between 1.5 and 3 times the mass of the sun will end up as neutron27 stars. A neutron star is a very small, super-dense star that is composed mostly of tightly packed neutrons. A rapidly spinning neutron star is known as a pulsar.

    Acknowledgement: NASA

    Black hole

    Black holes are all that remain after stars with masses over 3 times that of the sun supernova. A black hole28 is a massive object (or region) in space that is so dense that, within a certain radius (the Schwarzschild radius determines the event horizon), its gravitational field does not let anything escape from it – not even light.

    Acknowledgement: Alain r - Own work, CC BY-SA 2.5

    Elements, planet Earth and us

    “We are literally the ashes of long dead stars.” Scientists believe that the Solar System29 was formed when a cloud of gas and dust in space, made up of elements formed deep within stars, started to collapse, forming a solar nebula. This began to spin as it collapsed, eventually giving birth over billions of years to the Solar System as we know it today. Apart from hydrogen and helium, formed just after the Big Bang, most of the elements we come into contact with have been made in the stars. Planet Earth and all of its life forms are made of elements formed billions of years ago deep within the cores of stars now long dead.

    Acknowledgement: MediaCollege.com

    Rights: University of Waikato Published 17 September 2009, Updated 25 October 2017 Size: 280 KB Referencing Hub media
    1. element: A substance made of atoms that all have the same atomic number. Elements cannot be split into simpler substances using normal chemical methods.
    2. star: A self-luminous celestial body consisting of a mass of gas held together by its own gravity.
    3. evolve: To develop gradually. Changes in successive generations over long periods of time.
    4. Big Bang: This theory describes that the universe originated approximately 14 billion years ago from a violent explosion of a very small concentration of matter of extremely high density and temperature.
    5. hydrogen: First element on the periodic table –­ symbol H, with the atomic number of 1, meaning that it has a single proton in its nucleus.
    6. helium: (He) A colourless, odourless inert gaseous element occurring in natural gas and with radioactive ores.
    7. matter: The basic structural component of all things that have mass and volume.
    8. element: A substance made of atoms that all have the same atomic number. Elements cannot be split into simpler substances using normal chemical methods.
    9. gravity: The force attracting something towards the centre of Earth (or other large mass, like a moon or planet) – the reason that things fall to Earth.
    10. nuclear fusion: The process by which multiple atomic particles join together to form a heavier nucleus. This process is accompanied by the release or absorption of energy. The Sun produces heat and light by the nuclear fusion of hydrogen atoms into helium atoms.
    11. mass: The amount of matter an object has, measured in kilograms.
    12. constellation: An area of the night sky that contains a group of stars that seems to form a certain shape or picture.
    13. red giant: A star of great size and brightness that has a relatively low surface temperature. A stage in the life of a star.
    14. universe: All matter and energy, including the Earth, the galaxies and the contents of intergalactic space, regarded as a whole.
    15. nebula: A cloud of dust or gas in space. Some nebulae are where stars are being born, others are thrown off by dying stars.
    16. carbon: A non-metal element (C). It is a key component of living things.
    17. oxygen: A non-metal – symbol O, atomic number 8. Oxygen is a gas found in the air. It is needed for aerobic cellular respiration in cells.
    18. nitrogen: A non-metal – symbol N, atomic number 7. Nitrogen is essential for life. It is a component of many molecules that make up cells, including DNA and proteins.
    19. neon: Neon is a noble gas with the symbol Ne and atomic number 10. It is the second-lightest noble gas, after helium.
    20. galaxy: A large-scale collection of stars, gas and dust. Galaxies are held together by gravitational attraction. The Solar System is situated in the Milky Way galaxy.
    21. evolve: To develop gradually. Changes in successive generations over long periods of time.
    22. white dwarf: A small, hot star – once like our Sun – now near the end of its life. A white dwarf has a similar mass to our Sun, but is about the size of Earth.
    23. supernova: A rare celestial event involving the explosion of most of the material in a star, resulting in an extremely bright, short-lived object that emits vast amounts of energy.
    24. gold: A transition metal in Group 11 of the periodic table – symbol Au, atomic number 79.
    25. silver: A transition metal in Group 11 of the periodic table – symbol Ag, atomic number 47.
    26. heat energy (heat): Heat energy: the transfer of energy in materials from the random movement of the particles in that material. The greater the random movement of particles the more heat energy the material has. Temperature is a measure of the heat energy of a material.
      Heat: the flow of energy from a warm object to a cooler object.
    27. neutron: A particle that makes up the nucleus of an atom and has no charge. Because it is smaller than an atom, it is usually referred to as sub-atomic.
    28. black hole: A small object in space with huge mass and so much gravity that even light can’t escape.
    29. Solar System: The Sun and objects in orbit around it, including the planets and their moons, asteroids and comets. The Sun is a star like many others in the galaxy.
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        element

      1. + Create new collection
      2. A substance made of atoms that all have the same atomic number. Elements cannot be split into simpler substances using normal chemical methods.

        Big Bang

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      4. This theory describes that the universe originated approximately 14 billion years ago from a violent explosion of a very small concentration of matter of extremely high density and temperature.

        matter

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      6. The basic structural component of all things that have mass and volume.

        mass

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      8. The amount of matter an object has, measured in kilograms.

        universe

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      10. All matter and energy, including the Earth, the galaxies and the contents of intergalactic space, regarded as a whole.

        oxygen

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      12. A non-metal – symbol O, atomic number 8. Oxygen is a gas found in the air. It is needed for aerobic cellular respiration in cells.

        galaxy

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      14. A large-scale collection of stars, gas and dust. Galaxies are held together by gravitational attraction. The Solar System is situated in the Milky Way galaxy.

        gold

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      16. A transition metal in Group 11 of the periodic table – symbol Au, atomic number 79.

        neutron

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      18. A particle that makes up the nucleus of an atom and has no charge. Because it is smaller than an atom, it is usually referred to as sub-atomic.

        star

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      20. A self-luminous celestial body consisting of a mass of gas held together by its own gravity.

        hydrogen

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      22. First element on the periodic table –­ symbol H, with the atomic number of 1, meaning that it has a single proton in its nucleus.

        gravity

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      24. The force attracting something towards the centre of Earth (or other large mass, like a moon or planet) – the reason that things fall to Earth.

        constellation

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      26. An area of the night sky that contains a group of stars that seems to form a certain shape or picture.

        nebula

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      28. A cloud of dust or gas in space. Some nebulae are where stars are being born, others are thrown off by dying stars.

        nitrogen

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      30. A non-metal – symbol N, atomic number 7. Nitrogen is essential for life. It is a component of many molecules that make up cells, including DNA and proteins.

        white dwarf

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      32. A small, hot star – once like our Sun – now near the end of its life. A white dwarf has a similar mass to our Sun, but is about the size of Earth.

        silver

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      34. A transition metal in Group 11 of the periodic table – symbol Ag, atomic number 47.

        black hole

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      36. A small object in space with huge mass and so much gravity that even light can’t escape.

        evolve

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      38. To develop gradually.

        Changes in successive generations over long periods of time.

        helium

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      40. (He) A colourless, odourless inert gaseous element occurring in natural gas and with radioactive ores.

        nuclear fusion

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      42. The process by which multiple atomic particles join together to form a heavier nucleus. This process is accompanied by the release or absorption of energy. The Sun produces heat and light by the nuclear fusion of hydrogen atoms into helium atoms.

        red giant

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      44. A star of great size and brightness that has a relatively low surface temperature. A stage in the life of a star.

        carbon

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      46. A non-metal element (C). It is a key component of living things.

        neon

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      48. Neon is a noble gas with the symbol Ne and atomic number 10. It is the second-lightest noble gas, after helium.

        supernova

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      50. A rare celestial event involving the explosion of most of the material in a star, resulting in an extremely bright, short-lived object that emits vast amounts of energy.

        heat energy (heat)

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      52. Heat energy: the transfer of energy in materials from the random movement of the particles in that material. The greater the random movement of particles the more heat energy the material has. Temperature is a measure of the heat energy of a material.
        Heat: the flow of energy from a warm object to a cooler object.

        Solar System

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      54. The Sun and objects in orbit around it, including the planets and their moons, asteroids and comets. The Sun is a star like many others in the galaxy.