What is the fusion of a G2V star?

Question

Let me add just a bit to this question. I have a clue that reads, go north of the place named for the fusion of nearby G2V star....so it seems to me they are asking for a name for the fusion...I am so confused.

Answer 1

Let's first understand what is meant by the calssification "G2V."

The "G" refers to the star's Morgan-Keenan spectral class, or rather, the "temperature" of the light emitted by the star. In the case of a "G"-type star, it's peak emitted light has a "temperature" of 5,000-6,000 degrees kelvin and appears light yellow.

The "2" gives us a more precise notion of the star's temperature, in that the number can be anywhere from 0 to 9, with 0 being the hottest and 9 the coolest. So, if a "G"-type star has a temperature range of 5,000-6,000 degrees kelvin, then a "G2"-type star would be on the end closer to 6,000 degrees kelvin. A G2 star, in fact, is about 5,700 degrees kelvin.

The "V" refers to a roman numeral calssification called the Yerkes spectral classification which essentially tells us how big the star is. The numerals range from 0 to VII, with large stars being 0 and small stars being VII. A type V star, for example, is a dwarf star -- the very kind that lie on the main sequence.

So, a G2V star is a main sequence dwarf star with a temperature of about 5,700 degrees kelvin. As it turns out, our sun is a G2V star.

If by fusion you want to know what types of atoms are being produced in the star to generate energy, then we can say that a star with the characteristics of a G2V star generates its energy by a process of stellar fusion known as the "proton-proton chain," whereby two protons (or hydrogen nuclei) are combined to produce an alpha particle (or helium nucleus) along with massive amounts of energy.

Answer 2

Sciencenotsuperstition is right on! Excellent response. He gets my vote. The sun is a G2V star and primarily uses the proton-proton chaing as its fusion process.
There is another fusion process in the sun called the CNO cycle, but it is very, very minor and will not be a major player in the sun until the sun starts to get very old. Another form of fusion is the triple alpha process (helium fusion), but it is generally found only in more massive stars or red giants.
I have a some reservation about the name of some place being "proton-proton chain", though. Are you by any chance near one of the places where H-bombs were tested? You might look at some of those places. In the sport of geocaching, these kinds of riddles and puzzles are commonplace.

Answer 3

The rate of hydrogen fusion in the sun is 400 million tons per second. The sun is spectral type G2v.