Question

When a massive star, much bigger than our sun, reaches the end of its life cycle, it will expand into a red supergiant and then:

A. lose its corona and enter a second stable phase as a star again.
B. explode into a supernova.
C. collapse into a protostar.
D. collapse into a white dwarf.

Answer 1

When a massive star, much larger than our sun, reaches the end of its life cycle, it will undergo a series of fusion reactions in its core until it forms iron, which cannot undergo further fusion. Without fusion to counteract the force of gravity, the core collapses in on itself, causing the outer layers of the star to rapidly expand and creating a red supergiant. Eventually, the outer layers of the star will be expelled in a supernova explosion, leaving behind either a neutron star or a black hole, depending on the mass of the original star. So, the correct answer is B.