It is the nuclear fusion of hydrogen atoms, the same source of energy for many atomic bombs. This fusion takes place in the core of the Sun, where there is a pressure 10,000 times greater than in the center of the Earth. Squeezed together, the atoms in this part of the star unite: every four hydrogen atoms form one helium. However, this calculation is not so accurate, as the hydrogen quartet has a mass 0.7% greater than that of helium. It looks like a crumb, but it is precisely the matter left over from this fusion process that is transformed into light and heat.
“Every second, 4.7 billion tons of the Sun’s mass are converted into energy”, says astronomer Roberto Dias da Costa, from USP. This has been going on for more than five billion years and will last for another while, until the core’s stock of hydrogen runs out. The Sun will then seek energy in its most superficial layers, becoming a red giant star. It will be a disaster for us, as it will expand to the point of swallowing the Earth.
Afterwards, when entering a kind of third space age, the star will not support the growth of its own weight, it will end up contracting and, finally, will become a white dwarf – a type of small star, almost the size of the Earth. With the heat left over from the times of youth, the sun will continue to shine weakly, until it goes out for good!
stellar pressure cooker
From the union of hydrogen atoms, the light and heat of the Sun are born.
1. In the center of the Sun, because of the high temperatures of the star, the pressure is thousands of times greater than in the center of the Earth
2. When pressed, hydrogen atoms unite and become helium. The sum of every four hydrogen atoms, however, generates a mass slightly greater than that of a helium atom. It is this surplus that is transformed into energy.
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