Gold, Platinum and Uranium
Explanation:
A star is nothing but a huge ball of gas. Specifically, Hydrogen, the simplest element of nature. A star is in equilibrium because its immense mass causes it to collapse towards itself, squeezing those hydrogen nuclei or protons, and the union of the protons in its nucleus causes the star to explode, releasing energy. As long as these nuclear reactions exist (the same ones that human beings can cause with their hydrogen bombs), the star will remain in equilibrium.
Protons have a positive charge and tend to repel. But inside the stars they are so tight (there is a lot of pressure and temperature), that they can't avoid crashing. At that time, the electromagnetic force is defeated by what physicists call Strong Force, which holds together protons and neutrons forming more complex atoms. In a typical star, the protons join to form the next element in the periodic table: Helium, consisting of 2 protons and two neutrons. It is a rare element on Earth and was discovered in the Sun rather than on our planet. Hence his name, from the Greek Helios, the sun god.
However, the mass of the sum of the protons that bind to form Helium is less than the total mass of Helium. What happen? Are the laws of physics inside the stars not fulfilled? What happens is impossible to understand if one is born before Albert Einstein, but today it is very easy to explain. The mass that we lack, has actually become energy. The German physicist Albert Einstein (1879-1955) discovered that mass and energy are equivalent while formulating his Theory of Relativity. In fact, let me, for once, write a mathematical equation of an unparalleled beauty:
E = mc2
This equation tells us that the energy E is equal to the mass m times the square of a constant c; that constant c is the speed of light, approximately 300,000 km / s. That is, a very small mass, such as a proton, is equivalent to a very large energy, since the numerical factor by which the mass is multiplied is a very large number. And that energy is what the stars release, the one that our Sun emits and gives us life.
When Hydrogen is depleted, the star collapses until the pressure and temperature increase enough for Helium to fuse with itself; the cycle is repeated and the star ends up generating Carbon, Oxygen, Nitrogen, Silicon, Iron. As you can see, the stars are factories of atoms. When the star explodes, even heavier atoms are generated, such as Gold, Platinum, Uranium, elements that abound on our planet. And they abound, because the Sun is a second or third generation star: that is, it was born from the remains of other stars' explosions, along with the materials that make up our planet, the rest of the planets, the asteroids, the comets, the interstellar dust and ourselves.
