PHYSICAL

SCIENCE
CORE SUBJECT

Midterm Lesson 1
And then there were two
Self-Learning Tool on the Big Bang and the
Formation of the Elements



Prepared by: DHSBNHS-SHS Science Group


Department of Education
Region VI – Western Visayas
Division of La Carlota City











SDLM DEVELOPMENT TEAM




Written/Prepared by:
Grace C. Isidro



Checked & Reviewed by:

Ma. Lumina V. Rumbines Salvador A. Hiponia
Asst. Principal II for Academics Asst. Principal II for Operations
and Learner Support



Approved by:
Erle P. Arbado, PhD
Principal II, DHSBNHS-SHS



This material was developed by the science faculty of the Senior
High School of Doña Hortencia Salas Benedicto National High School
as a self-learning tool to supplement the learning needs of the SHS
students. It is NOT for sale and is available and designed for
educational purposes only.

 DHSBNHS – Senior High School | Physical Science

Content: Formation of the Light Elements in the Big Bang Theory
Content Standard: The learners demonstrate an understanding of the formation of the
elements during the Big Bang and during stellar evolution.
Learning Competency: By the end of this module, you should be able to:
1. Give evidence for and explain the formation of the light elements in the Big Bang
Theory
2. Give the evidence for and describe the formation of heavier elements during star
formation and evolution.
Specific Objectives: This module aims to help you accomplish the following objectives:
1. Identify the evidence for the formation of heavier elements during star formation.
2. Explain the formation of the light elements in the Big Bang Theory
3. Describe the formation of heavier elements during star formation.
4. Give the evidence for the formation of heavier elements during star formation
5. Describe how heavier elements formed during star formation
What you will need for this module: pen and paper, calculator
Time allotment: 5 days

I. Pre-Assessment / Let’s Review!

DIRECTIONS: How did the universe begin? Read the summary of the Big Bang Theory below
and arrange the stages (Recombination, Inflation, Big Bang Singularity, Nucleosynthesis) of
the Big Bang in the correct sequence using the chart provided.

The Big Bang Theory
The universe may have begun as an infinite hot and dense initial singularity, a point with
all of space, time, matter and energy. This means that there was no where, when or what. There
is no space around the singularity.
All of it then began to rapidly expand in a process called inflation. Space itself expanded
faster than the speed of light. In this still hot and dense mass of the universe, pairs of matter and
antimatter (quarks and antiquarks) were formed from energy, but these pairs cancelled each other
into energy (annihilation).
The universe cooled down as it expanded. An excess of matter (electrons, protons,
neutrons and other particles) somehow came to be in highly energetic “plasma soup.” Photon
(light particles) were being scattered everywhere in this “soup”. Protons and neutrons came
together to form different types of nuclei by nucleosynthesis or nuclear fusion.

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Much later on, electrons started to bind to ionized protons and nuclei forming neutral
atoms in the process called recombination. The bound particles no longer scattered photons so
light and energy moved freely across space. The period was hence known as the “dark ages”.
Gravity caused these atoms to collapse onto one another to form stars and galaxies and
eventually, other matter. This still happens until today. Space also continues to expand at an
accelerating rate, thus increasing the distance between the matter inside it.

Write the stage in appropriate box below.

( RECOMBINATION INFLATION BIG BANG SINGULARITY NUCLEOSYNTHESIS )

II. Let’s Study! / Discussion

The Big Bang Theory is a cosmological model stating that the universe started its
expansion about 13.8 billion years ago and its essential feature is the emergence of the universe
from a state of extremely high temperature and density. In 1920, Aleksandr Friedman (Russian
mathematician) and Georges Lemaitre (Belgian astronomer) proposed this type of universe and
the modern version was developed by George Gamow (Russian-born American physicist) and
his colleagues in the 1940s.

PIECES OF EVIDENCE SUPPORTING THE THEORY

1. Redshift
Vesto Slipher and Carl Wilhelm Wirtz (1910) measures the wavelengths of light from
spiral nebulae, which are interstellar clouds of dust and ionized gases (interstellar clouds of dust
and ionized gases). They discovered that the light from the nebulae increased in wavelength.
They explained their discovery as a Doppler shift.
In 1929, Edwin Hubble used the redshift of light from galaxies to calculate the velocities
and distances of these galaxies from the Earth. He discovered that they were moving away from
the Earth and from each other. His calculations supported the theory that the universe is
expanding.

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Doppler Effect
• when an object gets closer to us, its waves are
compressed into shorter wavelengths
(blueshifted, blue light has the shortest
wavelengths in the visible region).
• When an object is away from us, its light waves
are stretched into longer wavelengths
(redshifted, red light has the longest
wavelength in the visible region).
• Slipher & Wirtz explains that the redshift or increase in wavelength was due to the
increase in the distance between the Earth and the nebulae. They concluded
that the redshift occurred due to the expansion of the space.

2. Background Radiation
In 1965, Robert Wilson & Arno Penzias discovered a low,
steady ‘hum” from their Holmdel Horn antenna (an antenna built to
support NASA’s Project Echo). They concluded that the noise is
Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation (CMBR), the remains of
energy created after the big bang expansion.

3. Abundance of Light Element

They observed abundance of light elements supports the big bang theory. The theory
predicts that the universe is composed of 73% hydrogen and 25% helium by mass. The
prediction correlated to the measured abundances of primordial material in unprocessed gas in
some parts of the universe with no stars.

FORMATION OF LIGHT ELEMENTS

Big bang nucleosynthesis is the process of
producing the light elements during the big bang
expansion. In the beginning, the universe was very
hot that matter was fully ionized and dissociated.

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A few seconds after the start of the big bang, the universe was filled with protons, neutrons,
electrons, neutrinos, and positrons. After the first three minutes, the universe cooled down to a
point where atomic nuclei can form. Protons and neutrons combined to form atomic nuclei such
as deuterium.
However, the temperature of the universe was still much greater than the binding energy of
deuterium. Binding energy is the energy required to break down a nucleus into its components.
Therefore, deuterium easily decayed upon formation.
When the temperature cooled down
below 1010 K, deuterium nuclei combined
with other nuclei to form heavier ones.
Helium-3 was formed from the fusion of
two deuterium nuclei and a release of a
neutron.
Tritium or hydrogen-3 was produced from the
fusion of two deuterium nuclei and a release of a proton.

Helium-4 was also synthesized from deuterium

and helium-3.

Helium-4 was produced from the fusion of

deuterium and tritium.

For the first three minutes, a substantial amount of

neutrons was converted into helium-4 nuclei, before
their decay. Helium then combined to other nuclei to
form heavier ones such as lithium-7 and beryllium-7.
Lithium-7 was synthesized from helium-4 and tritium.

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Beryllium-7 is produced from helium-3 and

helium-4.


Among the light elements formed, deuterium, helium-3, helium-4, and lithium-7 were
stable. Beryllium-7 was unstable and decayed spontaneously to lithium-7.
7 7
Be + n Li + p
Helium-hydrogen stars had formed from the action of gravity, the hydrogen and helium in
stars began combining in nuclear fusion reaction that release a tremendous amount light, heat
and radioactive energy. Elements heavier than berrylium are formed through stellar
nucleosynthesis.

What are the nuclear fusion reactions that happen in the stellar cores?
Stellar nucleosynthesis is the process by which elements are formed in the cores and
shells of the stars through nuclear fusion reactions. The abundances of these elements change as
the stars evolve.
Nuclear fusion is a type of reaction that fuses lighter elements to form heavier ones. It
requires very high temperatures and pressures. It is the reaction that fuels the stars, sustained at
very high temperatures and pressures in their cores.
Hydrogen is the lightest element and the most abundant in space. Thus, the formation of
heavier elements starts with hydrogen. Hydrogen burning is the stellar process that produces
energy in the stars. There are two dominant hydrogen burning processes, the proton-proton chain
and carbon-nitrogen-oxygen (CNO) cycle.

Evolution of stars
The star formation theory proposes that stars form due to the collapse of the dense regions
of a molecular cloud. As the cloud collapses, the fragments contract to form a stellar core called
protostar. Due to strong gravitational force, the protostar contract and its temperature
increases. When the core temperature reaches about 10 million K, nuclear reactions begin. The
reaction release positrons and neutrinos which increase pressure and stop the contraction. When

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the contraction stops, the gravitational equilibrium is reached, and the protostar has become a
main sequence star.
In the core of a main sequence star, hydrogen
is fused into helium via the proton-proton
chain. When most of the hydrogen in the core
is fused into helium, fusion stops, and the
pressure in the core decreases. Gravity
squeezes the star to a point that helium and
hydrogen burning occur. Helium is converted
to carbon in the core while hydrogen is
converted to helium in the shell surrounding the
core. The star has become a red giant.

When the majority of the helium in the core has been converted to carbon, then the rate of
fusion decreases. Gravity again squeezes the star. In a low-mass star (with mass less than twice
the Sun’s mass), there is not enough mass for a carbon fusion to occur. The star’s fuel is
depleted, and over time, the outer material of the star is blown off into space. The only thing that
remains is the hot and inert carbon core. The star becomes a white dwarf.
A massive star has enough mass such that
temperature and pressure increase to a point
where carbon fusion can occur. The star goes
through a series of stages where heavier
elements are fused in the core and in the shells
around the core. The element oxygen is formed
from carbon fusion; neon from oxygen fusion;
magnesium from neon fusion: silicon from
magnesium fusion; and iron from silicon
fusion. The stars become a multiple-shell red
giant.
The fusion of elements continues until iron is formed by silicon fusion. Elements lighter
than iron can be fused because when two of these elements combine, they produce a nucleus
with a mass lower than the sum of their masses. The missing mass is released as energy.
Therefore, the fusion of elements lighter than iron releases energy. However, this does not
happen to iron nuclei. Rather than releasing energy, the fusion of two iron nuclei requires an

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input of energy. Therefore, elements lighter than and including iron can be produced in a
massive star, but no elements heavier than iron are produced.
When the core can no longer produce energy to
resist gravity, the star is doomed. Gravity squeezes
the core until the star explodes and releases a large
amount of energy. The star explosion is called
a supernova.

Pieces of Evidence Supporting the Star Formation Theory

The discovery of the interstellar medium of gas and dust during the early part of the 20th
century provided a crucial piece of evidence to support the star formation theory. Other pieces of
evidence come from the study of different stages of formation happening in different areas in
space and piecing them together to form a clearer picture.
Energy in the form of Infrared Radiation (IR) is detected from different stages of star
formation. For instance, astronomers measure the IR released by a protostar and compare it to
the IR from a nearby area with zero extinction.
Extinction in astronomy means the absorption and scattering of electromagnetic radiation
by gases and dust particles between an emitting astronomical object and an observer.
The IR measurements are then used to approximate the energy, temperature, and pressure
in the protostar.

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III. Let’s Practice! / Exercise
A. Fill in the blanks: Write the missing symbols to complete the nucleosynthesis reactions using
the nucleic symbols in the box.

D=1p+, 1n T= 1p+, 2n 3
He= 2p+, 1n 4
He= 2p+ , 2n 7Be= 4p+ , 3n 7Li= 3p+, 4n

1. p+ + n → ______ + ᵧ
3
2. He + D → _____ + p+
_______
3. + D → T + p+
7
4. ______ + ______ → Be + ᵧ
7 4 4
5. Li + ______ → He + He
B. Identification & Multiple Choice: Write your answer to each item.
____ 1. What process refers to the formation of elements?
____ 2. If we look into the space and see stars that show a blue shift, what does it tell us about
the star’s motion?
A. They are moving away from the Earth.
B. They are stationary.
C. They are moving toward the Earth.
D. None of the above.
____ 3. Which of the following is an evidence that the universe is expanding?
A. The sun burns hydrogen and helium.
B. Everything came from star dust.
C. The red shift of other galaxies show that the galaxies are moving away from each
other.
D. The blue shift of othert galaxies show that the galaxies are moving away from each
other.
____ 4. Which is the best explanation of the Big Bang Theory?
A. When a massive star explodes it is called a supernova.
B. Our solar system was formed by ancient stars.
C. The universe began as tiny point and exploded out and is still expanding today.
D. The solar system rotates around the sun due to the sun’s gravity.

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____ 5. Which of the following is the correct list of what happens first to what happen last?
A. Big Bang forms light elements, Fusion occurs in Stars, Massive stars explode and
form heavy elements.
B. Heavy elements become stars. The Big Bang causes stars to explode, Small
elements are created.
C. Big Bang forms heavy elements, Heavy elements are fused into stars. Stars explode
and from light elements.
D. Fusion takes place in stars, Massive stars explode and form heavy elements. Big
Bang creates small elements.

C. Modified True or False: Write true if the statement is correct or replace the underlined
word/s with the correct word or phrase.
_______________ 1. A star gets lighter as time goes on.
_______________ 2. Most of the heaviest elements were formed in the main sequence stars.
_______________ 3. The heavy elements in a star are found in its core.
_______________ 4. In stellar nucleosynthesis, heavier elements are formed from
combining lighter ones.
_______________ 5. A protostar is a star that blows apart and releases a large amount of
energy.

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IV. Points to Remember/Summary

• Pieces of evidence that support the big bang theory are redshift, cosmic microwave
background radiation, and abundance of light elements.
• Big bang nucleosynthesis is the process of light element formation.
• The light elements that formed after the big bang were helium, deuterium, and trace amounts
of lithium and beryllium.
• Deuterium, helium-3, helium-4, and lithium-7 were stable. On the other hand, beryllium-7
was unstable and decayed spontaneously to lithium-7.
• Binding energy is the energy required to break nucleus into its components.
• Edwin Hubble used the redshift of light from galaxies to calculate the velocities and
distances of these galaxies from the Earth.
• The Doppler shift or Doppler effect explains that when an object gets closer to us, its waves
are compressed into shorter wavelengths (blueshifted, blue light has the shortest wavelengths
in the visible region).
• Vesto Slipher and Carl Wilhelm Wirtz (1910) measures the wavelengths of light from
spiral nebulae, which are interstellar clouds of dust and ionized gases (interstellar clouds of
dust and ionized gases).
• Stellar nucleosynthesis is the process by which elements are formed within stars.
• A protostar is a stellar core formed when the fragments of a collapsed molecular cloud
contract.
• A main sequence star is formed when gravitational equilibrium is reached during the
hydrogen fusion in a protostar.
• A red giant is a star that has used up its hydrogen supply in the core and switched into the
thermonuclear fusion of hydrogen in the shell surrounding the core.
• A massive star becomes a multiple-shell red giant when the elements oxygen, neon,
magnesium, silicon, and iron are formed in its core together with carbon, helium, and
hydrogen.
• A supernova is a star that blows apart and releases a large amount of energy.
• Evidence of star formation comes from studying IR emissions from the different stages of star
evolution.

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V. Post-Assessment / Test Yourself

DIRECTIONS: Read the statements below carefully and circle the letter of the correct answer.

1. Which of the following refers to the process of producing the light elements such as helium?

A. Supernova nucleosynthesis C. Cosmic ray spallation

B. Big bang nucleosynthesis D. Doppler process

2. Sequence the fproducts of big bang nucleosynthesis from lowest to highest by mass.
A. hydrogen> deuterium> helium> lithium
B. lithium> Hydrogen> deuterium> helium
C. deuterium> Hydrogen> helium> lithium
D. helium> Hydrogen> deuterium> lithium
3. What happens when something redshifts?
A. Its energy increases. C. Its size increases.
B. Its frequency increases. D. Its wavelength increase.
4. Refer to the figure below. Which of the following is the by-product of the nucleosynthesis of
helium-4 from a deuterium and tritium?

A. helium-3 C. gamma radiation

B. proton D. neutron

5. Refer to the figure below. Which of the following is the other starting material for the
nucleosynthesis of beryllium-7 from helium-4?

A. helium-3 C. gamma radiation

B. proton D. neutron

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6. What does the increase in wavelength of light from a galaxy mean?
A. The galaxy is moving towards the Earth, and the universe is expanding.
B. The galaxy is moving towards the Earth, and the universe is being compressed.
C. The galaxy is moving away from the Earth, and the universe is being compressed.
D. The galaxy is moving away from the Earth, and the universe is expanding.
7. Which of the following describes stellar nucleosynthesis?
A. It is the formation of elements during a supernova explosion
B. It is the process by which elements are produced in a gas clouds.
C. It is the formation of light elements as hydrogen and helium.
D. by which It is the process elements are formed within sta.rs.
8. Which of the following is a stellar core formed when the fragments of a collapsed molecular
cloud contract?
A. protostar C. red giant
B. supernova D. main sequence star
9. Arrange the following stages of stellar evolution of a low-mass star.
A. Protostar> main sequence star> red giant> white dwarf
B. Protostar> main sequence star> white dwarf> Red giant
C. Main sequence star> protostar> red giant> white dwarf
D. Main sequence star> red giant> white dwarf> protostar
10. Which of the following are true about the formation of elements lighter than iron in the core
of the stars?
I. When the elements combine, they release energy which can fuel the nuclear fusion
reactions in the star.
II. When the elements combine, they produce a nucleus with a mass lower than the
sum of their masses.
III. When there is an input of an energy from a nuclear fission reactions in the star the
elements are formed.
IV. When the elements combine, they produce a nucleus with a mass greater than the
sum of their mass.
A. I only C. I and II
B. II only D. III and IV

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VI. Answer Keys
Answers to Pre-Assessment
Big Bang Singularity → Inflation → Nucleosynthesis → Recombination
Answers to Exercises
A.
1. D
2. 4He
3. D
4. 3He, 4He
5. p+
B.
1. nucleosynthesis
2. C
3. C
4. C
5. A
C.
1. Heavier 3. True 5. Supernova
2. Supernova 4. True

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