Carbon stars are stars that have a large amount of carbon in their atmospheres. These are stars that are near the end of their lives. They have depleted the hydrogen in their cores and are fusing helium into carbon.

The end result of this process is thought to result in a hot white dwarf surrounded by a planetary nebula made up of gas given off by the star during it's final stages.

Carbon stars have a very distinctive color. They are noticably different from the other red stars. Most other red stars are actually a reddish orange hue. Carbon stars have the characteristic deep red hue shown in these images.

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