Neutrinos from the Sun CNO Something Weird

Neutrinos from the Sun show our parent star is undergoing CNO fusion. Here’s why that is so weird.

A detector placed far underground shows the first direct evidence of the CNO fusion cycle happening in our Sun. Image by The Cosmic Companion / Background image NASA / CNO cycle by CWitte.

Most people realize our Sun is producing light and heat from the fusion of hydrogen into helium. However, the process of merging together hydrogen nuclei into helium is not as straightforward as it might seem.