"In those suns which are encircuited in the space-energy channels, solar energy is liberated by various complex nuclear-reaction chains, the most common of which is the hydrogen-carbon-helium reaction. In this metamorphosis, carbon acts as an energy catalyst since it is in no way actually changed by this process of converting hydrogen into helium. Under certain conditions of high temperature the hydrogen penetrates the carbon nuclei. Since the carbon cannot hold more than four such protons, when this saturation state is attained, it begins to emit protons as fast as new ones arrive. In this reaction the ingoing hydrogen particles come forth as a helium atom." (P. 464)

   During the early years of the 20^th century, attempts to account for the energy liberated by stars such as our sun had all failed. In 1929, Atkinson and Houtermans were able to show that some kind of nuclear process is the only way that would account for the exceedingly high temperatures thought to exist at the center of the sun. In 1938, Bethe and Critchfield formulated the proton-proton chain reaction by which smaller stars such as our sun produced their energy and in 1939, Bethe described another reaction in which carbon catalyses helium production in larger stars.

   The above quotation from the Urantia Book is interesting in that it stems directly from the work of Hans Bethe and coworker but later illustrates a technique supportive of the credentials of the book's authors in that it repeats a procedure that became evident in the earlier paper, "Two remarkable prophesies: the radii of the electron and the proton." In that, the authors utilised subject matter taken from a then current science text book by physicist, W.F.G. Swann, quoting directly when the text was correct but avoiding material that would turn out to be incorrect.

   In the articles that follow that highlight the saga of the neutrinos, a major contributor to the contentious material is the colourful and speculative Russian physicist, George Gamow who claimed original authorship for the Big Bang theory--even though his proposed pathways of element synthesis turned out to be quite wrong--and the work was discredited and abandoned. In this instance Gamow also quotes from Bethe's article but mistakenly states that "the carbon cycle (that catalyses conversion of hydrogen to helium) is the particular nuclear reaction responsible for energy production in the sun and all other stars of the main sequence."

   In fact the carbon cycle operates only in large high temperature stars (as pointed out in the quote in the Urantia Paper) but in relatively small stars like our sun, it is the proton-proton chain reaction that is the major energy source. Again the Urantia Book authors have avoided repeating the errors of authors from whom they are quoting. This we will see repeated in the articles that follow.