106 How the Sun Works

The sun does not burn . The belief that the sun does burn is a misconception. In stars the size of the sun or smaller, the fusion process is referred to as the proton-proton cycle or proton-proton chain reaction .The general steps to the Proton-proton cycle include:

  1. Two protons fuse to produce a deuterium nucleus (p + + n 0 ) — a positron, a neutrino, and a lot of energy
  2. A proton and a deuterium atom combine to form a He-3, Gamma Ray, and energy
  3. Two He-3 atoms combine to form a He-4 atom, two protons, and energy

It takes about 100,000 years for that energy to get from the sun’s core to the photosphere.

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