  The explosion energy of thermonuclear (Type Ia) supernovae is derived from
the difference in nuclear binding energy liberated in the explosive fusion of
light 'fuel' nuclei, predominantly carbon and oxygen, into more tightly bound
nuclear 'ash' dominated by iron and silicon group elements. The very same
explosive thermonuclear fusion event is also one of the major processes
contributing to the nucleosynthesis of the heavy elements, in particular the
iron-group elements. For example, most of the iron and manganese in the sun and
its planetary system were produced in thermonuclear supernovae. Here, we review
the physics of explosive thermonuclear burning in carbon-oxygen white dwarf
material and the methodologies utilized in calculating predicted
nucleosynthesis from hydrodynamic explosion models. While the dominant
explosion scenario remains unclear, many aspects of the nuclear combustion and
nucleosynthesis are common to all models and must occur in some form in order
to produce the observed yields. We summarize the predicted nucleosynthetic
yields for existing explosion models, placing particular emphasis on
characteristic differences in the nucleosynthetic signatures of the different
suggested scenarios leading to Type Ia supernovae. Following this, we discuss
how these signatures compare with observations of several individual
supernovae, remnants, and the composition of material in our galaxy and galaxy
clusters.
