What Is the Most Massive Star?

Massive stars are a vital part of new studies around space. Astronomers are now thoroughly studying the largest and most radiant luminous bodies in the universe, their composition and evolution. There is even a list with some of those that have been discovered so far, classified according to their mass.

Stars are objects that are born practically from chance. This occurs when fragments of matter and gases that come together begin to exert gravity. Their light is generated by the nuclear fusion process that occurs within them, when energy escapes from the mass. Now, what happens when this process occurs on a large scale?

What are massive stars?

Massive stars are celestial objects that are born from large chunks of matter. In fact, this category is given to a star when it is calculated that it has more than eight solar masses. It should be noted that the solar mass is a unit to measure the dimensions of the bodies that are in space.

The magnitude of their components makes them evolve differently from small and medium stars. A small star stops its nuclear fusion cycle by producing carbon. In contrast, the massive ones continue this process creating oxygen, neon, and silicon all the way to iron.

When a massive star forms iron, its core tends to shrink. This is the beginning of the end for massive stars, signifying their last evolutionary stage. After this, the celestial object will collapse generating the supernova event. What it means that this body has eight solar masses is that its mass manages to be eight times larger than the sun.


Massive stars are a vital part of new studies around space. Astronomers are now thoroughly studying the largest and most radiant luminous bodies in the universe, their composition and evolution. There is even a list with some of those that have been discovered so far, classified according to their mass.

Stars are objects that are born practically from chance. This occurs when fragments of matter and gases that come together begin to exert gravity. Their light is generated by the nuclear fusion process that occurs within them, when energy escapes from the mass. Now, what happens when this process occurs on a large scale?

What are massive stars?

Massive stars are celestial objects that are born from large chunks of matter. In fact, this category is given to a star when it is calculated that it has more than eight solar masses. It should be noted that the solar mass is a unit to measure the dimensions of the bodies that are in space.

The magnitude of their components makes them evolve differently from small and medium stars. A small star stops its nuclear fusion cycle by producing carbon. In contrast, the massive ones continue this process creating oxygen, neon and silicon all the way to iron.

When a massive star forms iron, its core tends to shrink. This is the beginning of the end for massive stars, signifying their last evolutionary stage. After this, the celestial object will collapse generating the supernova event. What it means that this body has eight solar masses is that its mass manages to be eight times larger than the sun. Stars
Pulsars or Black Hole?

Massive stars evolve very fast and are destined to transform. Depending on its mass and how its nucleus evolves, the result will be different. The first thing is that this object will become a neutron star.

If the mass of this star is small, it will remain much more stable. In fact, from here it will become a pulsar, which is characterized by emitting periodic radiation. These stars rotate at high speed and emit at regular intervals. Now, if its proportions are greater, it will become a black hole.

Astrophysicists know that learning about massive stars will give them a better understanding of black holes. However, the exact calculation of its mass is still difficult. Furthermore, the massive star has a very short lifespan and very few have been detected. Without a doubt, in this object is the key to many answers about the universe.