The life cycle of a star depends primarily on its mass with stars burning their fuel more quickly. for nuclear fusion in stars to begin, the elements must undergo extremely high and pressures. elements heavier than hydrogen are scattered throughout the universe when a massive star explodes as a all elements heavier than are produced in the core of a red supergiant. the spectrum emitted from a star changes as the star's temperature changes. respond to the following based on your reading. briefly describe why the mass of a star determines its fate after a supernova explosion.