Why Do Stars "Burn"?

Question

Homework Porject!!!!

Answer 1

Nuclear fusion.

Stars are very dense. As such, their gravitational pull is immense. This causes the atoms in stars to be pulled very close to each other. As they get closer and closer, any electrons that may be around the nucleus of the atoms gain more and more energy and eventually are far enough away that the nucleus of the atoms can interact. Because gravity is still pulling these atoms close together, eventually these nuclei are close enough to start to interact.

In a nucleus there are two different particles, protons and neutrons. Neutrons have a neutral charge and protons have a positive charge. If you have ever played with magnets, you know that like poles push away from each other and that different poles attract. That is, two north poles repel and a north and south pole attract. This is a consequence of like charges repelling. Since protons have the same charge they like to repel each other. But gravity is also pulling them together. Eventually gravity wins and the protons get close enough together for something spectacular to occur.

At this point, I think it necessary to give some names to a few of the forces that are interacting. I have already talked about gravity. This is a force that, to our current knowledge, always attracts. Another force is the repulsion of like charges. This is called a Coulombic force. There is a third force that is present in stars, and it is this which I will talk about next.

As the protons get close enough to each other, this third force begins to take effect. This is called the strong nuclear force. This force is VERY powerful, but only operates over VERY short distances. Gravity and the Coulombic force operate over ALL distances. No matter how close or how far apart, gravity and the coulombic force are always present. As distance increases, these forces become smaller and so at very large distances they have a very small value, sometimes it is small enough that you can consider it to be zero.

The strong nuclear force is what holds the nucleus of an atom together. It is strong enough to overcome the repulsion of like charges but only when they are close enough together for the strong force to be present. So, as gravity pulls the protons closer together eventually they are close enough to be held together.

This configuration of two protons has less energy than two protons by themselves. This excess energy, due to conservation of energy, must be released. The energy takes the form of light, which is the 'burning' of stars.

Answer 2

1) they are very dense, which causes higher temperature
2) the fusion reactions that go on in them produce tons of energy
(in the sun, hydrogen atoms are fused to make helium-4, and ocaisionally other, heavier isotopes like lithium-7. you can look up the exact reaction, if you need details, because i don't know how to send a diagram on here.)

and no, hydrogen and helium absolutely do not contain oxygen. they're separate elements. there is no actual "flame." that's why "burn" is in quotation marks. "plasma" refers to a state in which temperature is so high that electrons do not remain bound to atomic nuclei, and plasma gives off light. that's why the sun appears to be burning.
but as i said, the energy comes from the fusion of hydrogen nuclei into helium nuclei. the most common fusion product is helium-4 because it is stable.

Answer 3

The sun is five billion years old and it isn't burning per say. It is a large fusion reactor. Fusing two hydrogen atoms into one helium atom in it's core. The sun is now in equilibrium between the star wantingto expand due to it's fusion and the gravity wanting to crush it to it's smallest space possible.which in the end gravity will win out, the sun will be a white dwarf five billion years from now,after it's fuel runs out and it uses it's ashes up from it's earlier fusions making heavier elements like iron.

Answer 4

They don't 'burn' in the sense of an oxidation-reduction reaction (such as a flame). They are actually very large 'hydrogen bombs' which fuse hydrogen into helium (with a few other side reactions going on as well)

Lots of info available on them on the Web ☺


Doug

Answer 5

you're making an exceptionally stable factor. I had a confusing upbringing so i will’t inform you as quickly as I final enjoyed each physique as a newborn…i'm a forgiving style of individual, I discovered an prolonged time in the past to forgive and ignore. i could not have survived without being waiting to do this. A three hundred and sixty 5 days in the past I had a communique with a pastor (authorized minister)…he made me experience very small a pair of remark I made related to how I hear the Lord refer to me… His respond actually took me to my knees. He informed me i replaced into listening to devil refer to me… His view of my style of love for people replaced into “sugar lined”, that I wasn’t a good number of a Christian…I defined i might desire to uphold the guidelines of God and nonetheless love people…he replaced into all approximately hell, hearth and brimstone and that i’m extra touching directly to the dominion. the 1st factor I did replaced into get my Devotional Bible and asked the Lord if i replaced into incorrect...as I often do I pray and communicate with the Lord and ask for his training, I opened my devotional to: Matthew 18:3 And reported, Verily I say unto you, different than ye be converted, and grow to be as little toddlers, ye shall not enter into the dominion of heaven. Jesus reported : John 13:34 a clean commandment I supply unto you, That ye love one yet another; as I even have enjoyed you, that ye additionally love one yet another. This doesn’t brush aside us from coaching the gospels or the punishment…yet i think of it would be our first instruction manual line in how we do it As a parent i found I even have unconditional love for my toddlers… yet my toddlers have had (at cases) conditional love for me … can we attitude God with conditional or unconditional love? God bless you, faith

Answer 6

A star is a massive, luminous ball of plasma.

Answer 7

Its a reaction not burning.

Answer 8

because they are composed mostly of helium and hydrogen,both flammabe substances,(i think they are both flammable) and also because both hyrdogen and helium have oycigen in them,and thats what they burn off of

Answer 9

somthing about the sun and gas, you should go to www.monsterfacts.com its a cool website that helps with homework!