# Artificially Halting Fusion in a Star? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 24, 2020, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artificially-halting-fusion-in-a-star/850192 "2020-03-24T18:19:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![eburacum45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eburacum45/32/8690_2.png) [@eburacum45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eburacum45)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2020, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artificially-halting-fusion-in-a-star/850192/41 "2020-03-28T12:28:19Z")
There are numerous stars in the Milky Way Galaxy which have a black hole in close orbit around them. These stars are gradually losing mass as it is falling into the black hole, but in most cases the infalling matter is pinched and fusion occurs. Often these pinch-points are very bright in x-ray wavelengths, so these pairs are known as x-ray binaries. Some of thedonor stars have lost quite a lot of mass, so this method might eventually work. This diagram gives a nice list of x-ray binaries together with their respective sizes. [![](https://jila.colorado.edu/~ajsh/courses/astr2030_19/xraybin/mcclintock.gif) ](https://jila.colorado.edu/~ajsh/courses/astr2030_19/xraybin/mcclintock.gif) ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2020, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artificially-halting-fusion-in-a-star/850192/42 "2020-03-28T13:55:55Z")
> [@eburacum45](#): > > There are numerous stars in the Milky Way Galaxy which have a black hole in close orbit around them. These stars are gradually losing mass as it is falling into the black hole, but in most cases the infalling matter is pinched and fusion occurs. Often these pinch-points are very bright in x-ray wavelengths, so these pairs are known as x-ray binaries. I thought emission from accretion was from gravitational potential energy, not fusion? Also, I think the mass loss would stop as soon as it lost enough mass that the star no longer fills the Roche lobe. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2020, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artificially-halting-fusion-in-a-star/850192/43 "2020-03-28T14:32:14Z")
Both, usually. The gravitational energy from accretion heats the material enough for fusion. ---
**Author:** ![eburacum45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eburacum45/32/8690_2.png) [@eburacum45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eburacum45)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2020, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artificially-halting-fusion-in-a-star/850192/44 "2020-03-28T16:05:27Z")
But you are right about the Roche lobe. Note, however, that many of the known x-ray binaries are quite small stars; if a star were near the lowest mass possible for a red dwarf, it could lose enough material over time to become a brown dwarf and cease fusion altogether. ---
**Author:** ![RioRico](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f04885/32.png) [@RioRico](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RioRico)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2020, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artificially-halting-fusion-in-a-star/850192/45 "2020-03-29T03:28:57Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > 1. we don’t have that much oxygen The OP asked for “known science” not engineering. We’ll get the O2 from _somewhere_. _Exactly_ where is beyond the questions’s scope. > [@](#): > > 1. based on [this column by Cecil: How many ice cubes would it take to put out the sun?](https://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/3071/how-many-ice-cubes-would-it-take-to-put-out-the-sun/), it still wouldn’t work. Ice cubes won’t work; too much H2. No, we must merely find an O2 mass somewhere and haul it into place. With drones, probably. Unless you’re volunteering your family. I’d stake mine but they’re lazy sods. YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2020, 7:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artificially-halting-fusion-in-a-star/850192/46 "2020-03-29T07:08:36Z")
> [@RioRico](#): > > Ice cubes won’t work; too much H2. No, we must merely find an O2 mass somewhere and haul it into place. Still wouldn’t work. it’s way too hot in the sun for water molecules to form or stay together. A point Cecil made in the column. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2020, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artificially-halting-fusion-in-a-star/850192/47 "2020-04-27T15:47:38Z")
[How about a red giant being turned into a gas giant](https://www.sciencealert.com/this-black-hole-s-weirdly-regular-feeding-schedule-is-because-it-s-snacking-on-a-star/amp)? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2020, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artificially-halting-fusion-in-a-star/850192/48 "2020-04-27T16:51:29Z")
Fascinating. I wonder if a space-based gravitational wave detector would be able to detect that? On the one hand, .21 solar masses is an awfully small orbiter to be detected. On the other hand, already knowing the precise sky location, period, and phase, and rough masses, would make template matching a lot more powerful. Unfortunately, 9 hours is much too low a frequency for ground-based instruments like LIGO. ---
**Author:** ![Enola\_Straight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dec6dc/32.png) [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artificially-halting-fusion-in-a-star/850192/49 "2020-04-28T13:56:13Z")
Being “infected” by negatively charged Strange Matter. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/p_8yK2kmxoo/maxresdefault.jpg "The Most Dangerous Stuff in the Universe - Strange Stars Explained") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_8yK2kmxoo) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/artificially-halting-fusion-in-a-star/850192.md?page=2)