Extreme Helium Star (EHe Star): Discovery, Mystery and Properties

Discover Extreme Helium Star (EHe Stars), rare and hot stars almost entirely composed of helium, offering insights into stellar evolution and the final stages of star life cycles.

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Context: Researchers have discovered a rare cosmic phenomenon in star A980, an Extreme Helium Star (EHe Star), which contains an unusually high amount of germanium, a metallic element never seen before in such stars.

About Extreme Helium Star (EHe Star)

Definition: A rare, low-mass supergiant star almost completely lacking hydrogen.
Composition: Made primarily of helium (unlike typical stars, which are hydrogen-rich).
Origin: Believed to form from the merger of a carbon-oxygen white dwarf and a less massive helium white dwarf
Rarity: Only 21 such stars have been identified in our galaxy so far
Temperature Range: Effective surface temperatures range between 8,000–35,000 K
Discovery: The first EHe star, HD 124448, was discovered in 1942 at McDonald Observatory by Daniel M. Popper

About Germanium

Element Name: Germanium (Symbol: Ge, Atomic Number: 32)
Group: Lies in Group 14 (IVa) of the periodic table, between silicon and tin
Appearance: Silvery-grey metalloid, with intermediate properties of metals and nonmetals
Structure: Has a diamond-like crystalline structure, chemically similar to silicon
Stability: Stable in air and water; unaffected by most acids and alkalis except nitric acid
China: Produces around 60% of the world’s germanium
Others: Canada, Finland, Russia, and the United States contribute the remaining production.