fusion reactions in stars
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Fusing hydrogen atoms into heavier elements produces helium and releases a large amount of energy in the form of heat and light. This process, known as nuclear fusion, occurs in the core of stars like our sun and is responsible for the sun's energy output.
In the current stage of the Universe, stars start off with lots of hydrogen-1 - and that's what they first fuse, since fusing heavier elements requires higher temperatures.Actually, hydrogen-2 (also known as deuterium) is even easier to fuse, but stars don't have significant amounts of that.
Hydrogen is the lightest element in the universe, with a single proton and one electron in its nucleus.
In 1818 there were 49 known and accepted (by the scientific community) elements.
The simplest substance known is the hydrogen atom. It is the most abundant element in the universe and consists of just one proton and one electron. All other elements in the periodic table are built by combining hydrogen atoms with other atoms through nuclear fusion processes.