Explain why elements heavier than iron only form during supernova.
Answers
Answer:
Many elements heavier than iron are formed supernova explosions. The amount of energy released during a supernova explosion is so high that the freed energy and copious free neutrons streaming from the collapsing core result into massive fusion reactions, long past the formation of iron
EXPLANATION:
All of the elements on earth heavier than helium were produced in stellar furnaces, the chemical elements up to the iron peak are produced in ordinary stellar nucleosynthesis.
Many elements heavier than iron are formed supernova explosions. The amount of energy released during a supernova explosion is so high that the freed energy and copious free neutrons streaming from the collapsing core result into massive fusion reactions, long past the formation of iron. Sure, this absorbs a lot of energy. Hence for elements heavier than iron, nuclear fusion consumes energy but there's plenty available once the explosion has begun or that the nuclear fission releases it. The creation of rarer elements (heavier than iron and nickel), were a result of the type II supernova event’s last few seconds. The synthesis is endothermic as are created from the energy produced during the supernova explosion.
The abundances of elements between Mg (Z=12) and Ni (Z=28). is due to the supernova nucleosynthesis within the exploding stars by fusion of C and O.
r process-
Some of those elements are created from the absorption of multiple neutrons in the period of a few seconds during the explosion. The elements formed in supernovas include the heaviest elements known, such as the long-lived elements uranium and thorium.
s process-
50% of the chemical elements heavier than iron are also produced by slow neutron capture process which come from the alpha particle reactions with C-13 or Ne-22.
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Explanation:
Many elements heavier than iron are formed supernova explosions. The amount of energy released during a supernova
explosion is so high that the freed energy and copious free neutrons streaming from the collapsing core result into massive fusion reactions, long past the formation of iron.