Definition
In astrophysics, Z is used to denote the mass fraction of all elements except hydrogen and helium in a star or other astronomical object. Those elements, considered as “heavy elements” and often called “metals” by astronomers, differ with respect to hydrogen and helium because their production implies processing by a star, either through nuclear reactions during the Main Sequence or giant phase, or as a consequence of a supernova explosive event. The abundance of these heavy elements is thus a very important indicator of the processing by stars in a galaxy.
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© 2011 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
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Rouan, D. (2011). Z. In: Gargaud, M., et al. Encyclopedia of Astrobiology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-11274-4_1702
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-11274-4_1702
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