What is Neon Burning?
Neon burning is a nuclear reaction which occurs in the core of massive stars (8 solar masses or greater) near the end of their life. It converts neon to oxygen and magnesium atoms, releasing light and heat in the process. Neon burning is so rapid that it only takes place over the course of a few years, a blink of an eye in astrophysics, where timescales are usually measured in millions or billions of years. The neon burning process occurs after carbon burning and before oxygen burning. For most of a star’s lifespan, it will slowly burn hydrogen in its core, fusing the hydrogen nuclei into helium nuclei, slowly raising the percentage of helium in its core. If the star is massive enough, it will begin fusing helium through the triple-alpha process, leaving the main sequence and becoming a giant star. If the star has even more mass, it will start fusing helium into carbon, a process that only takes about 1000 years. What happens next separates the truly massive stars from the smaller ones
