Talk:Supergiant/Archive 1
Latest comment: 11 years ago by Lithopsian in topic What is the energy source of a supergiant?
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| Archive 1 |
Images, anyone?
Does anyone have an image of a supergiant? — Preceding unsigned comment added by U.S.A. (talk • contribs) 01:00, 29 March 2006 (UTC)
How are Supergiants formed?
It doesn't say how supergiants formed. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Aceboy222 (talk • contribs) 00:39, 18 December 2006 (UTC)
- pretty much like any other star, but with...more gas available. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.18.8.160 (talk) 06:19, 24 January 2013 (UTC)
- This reply really misses the point. Supergiants are indeed more massive than most stars, but there are equally (and more!) massive stars which are not supergiants. The article fails to really express why, how, or when supergiants form, or really to give a meaningful summary of where supergiants fit into the grand scheme of things. The stellar evolution article does explain this, but if that is to be the excuse for lack of information here, then people need to be very clearly directed to where they can find the information. Lithopsian (talk) 12:15, 24 January 2013 (UTC)
What is the energy source of a supergiant?
It doesn't say.
Is it helium fusion? If so, is it via the triple-alpha process? SolomonFreer 04:51, 3 November 2007 (UTC)
- supergiants can burn pretty much anything. Hydrogen, helium, carbon, even iron(?)...I'd add it to the article itself, but I don't have a good reference to use. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.18.8.160 (talk) 06:20, 24 January 2013 (UTC)
- Again, the response fails to understand or answer the question. Supergiants can't burn "anything". They form very specifically because a star has started to burn elements heavier than hydrogen. They *might* still be burning hydrogen in a shell outside the core, but most certainly they are burning something else in the core. In almost all cases this is helium (although note that burning helium in the core isn't sufficient to create a supergiant), but in the most massive stars it can be heavier elements for a brief period. Again, the stellar evolution article explains this reasonably well. The supernova article also describes some of the later stages in the life of a massive star. Lithopsian (talk) 12:20, 24 January 2013 (UTC)