A brief, explosive burst of helium fusion that occurs in the core of low-mass stars when they become red giants. This event happens when helium ignites under degenerate conditions, releasing enormous amounts of energy in seconds.
Named for the element helium (from Greek 'helios' meaning sun) and 'flash' indicating the sudden, brief nature of the event. The phenomenon was theoretically predicted in the 1960s through stellar evolution models.
A helium flash releases more energy in a few seconds than our Sun will produce in 100 million years, yet it happens deep inside the star where we can't see it directly! This invisible cosmic explosion marks a crucial turning point in a star's life cycle.
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