Stars - Are they Electrically Powered?

It has pretty much been accepted by most in the science world that our sun, and in fact all stars, are powered by nuclear fusion. What if the fusion reaction we are witnessing is a result of a totally separate set of processes from outside the star? Farfetched? Physicist Wal Thornhill does not think so. He has proposed a separate theory of star dynamics that ties the photosphere of the sun interactively with the surrounding stars in our galactic neighborhood. He believes that the plasma shell which surrounds all stars, the Photosphere, transmits electric and dynamic energies from the surrounding star field (much like static electricity in a thunderstorm). This photosphere extends a great distance from our sun, and in fact reaches to the nearest stars. He feels this is the source of the energy that sustains the continuous fusion process we witness in the core of the sun.

Very unusual hypothesis. It is likely world shattering if true.

Here is a fairly technical article about it.

Here is another, not so technical.