carbon detonation

noun

The explosive ignition of thermonuclear fusion within a carbon-oxygen white dwarf star that occurs when its mass exceeds approximately 1.4 times that of the Sun (due to accretion of material or merger with another star), producing a supernova which completely destroys the star.

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Meanings

nouncarbon detonation (countable and uncountable, plural carbon detonations)

plural carbon detonations

  1. countableuncountablenuclear physicsastronomyThe explosive ignition of thermonuclear fusion within a carbon-oxygen white dwarf star that occurs when its mass exceeds approximately 1.4 times that of the Sun (due to accretion of material or merger with another star), producing a supernova which completely destroys the star.
Cite this entry
APA

carbon detonation. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/carbon%20detonation

MLA

“carbon detonation.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/carbon%20detonation. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “carbon detonation,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/carbon%20detonation.

Source: carbon detonation on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.