An Etymological Dictionary of Astronomy and Astrophysics
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A region of the → Hertzsprung-Russell diagram populated by evolving → low-mass to → intermediate-mass stars. These stars have an electron → degenerate core of carbon and oxygen surrounded by two burning shells of helium and hydrogen. The H and He-burning shells are activated alternately in the deep layers of the star. An extended and tenuous convection envelope, having a radius of 10⁴-10⁵ times the size of the core, lies above these shells. The loosely bound envelope is gradually eroded by the strong → stellar wind, which forms a dusty → circumstellar envelope out to several hundreds of stellar radii. The convective envelope, stellar atmosphere, and circumstellar envelope have a rich and changing chemical composition provided by → nucleosynthesis processes in the burning shells in the deep interior.

→ symptotic; → giant; → branch.

A star in a short-lived evolutionary stage evolving from the → asymptotic giant branch toward higher → effective temperatures. The majority of low and intermediate mass stars (1 to 8 → solar masses) are believed to pass through this stage on their way to becoming → planetary nebulae.

→ post-; → asymptotic giant branch.