4.5 The Life and Death of Stars

What is the primary material from which stars form in the earliest era of star formation?

• Iron and nickel

• Hydrogen and helium

• Silicon and neon

• Carbon and oxygen

What process describes the fusion of nuclei inside a star?

• Electromagnetic fusion

• Strong nuclear force

• Beta decay

• Helium flash

What is left behind after a low-mass star dies?

• Supernova remnant

• Black hole

• Neutron star

• White dwarf

What marks the transition of a star into a red giant?

• Iron core formation

• Helium flash

• Core contraction and heating

• Complete hydrogen depletion

What is the fate of a high-mass star's core if it is above the Chandrasekhar limit?

• It disperses into space

• It becomes a white dwarf

• It collapses into a black hole

• It forms a neutron star

What event is characterized by the explosion of a high-mass star?

• Red giant expansion

• Supernova

• White dwarf cooling

• Planetary nebula formation

During which stellar phase does a star fuse helium into carbon and oxygen?

• Helium flash

• Horizontal branch

• Main sequence

• Red giant

What is the maximum mass for a white dwarf, known as the Chandrasekhar limit?

• 5 solar masses

• 10 solar masses

• 3 solar masses

• 1.4 solar masses

What phenomenon occurs when a star's core collapses under gravity, with no further fusion possible?

• Black hole formation

• Neutron star formation

• Supernova

• White dwarf formation

What is synthesized in a supernova that cannot be created during the normal life of a star?

• Carbon

• Hydrogen

• Helium

• Elements heavier than iron