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Yahoo
2 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Where does the universe's gold come from? Giant flares from extreme magnetic stars offer a clue
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Scientists have finally gathered direct proof of how the universe forges its heaviest elements, a process that has remained a mystery for over half a century. A team from the Flatiron Institute in New York City calculated that giant flares emitted by magnetars — highly magnetic types of collapsed stars known as neutron stars — could be the long-sought cosmic forge that creates the universe's heavy elements. Just one of these giant flares could produce a planet's worth of gold, platinum, and uranium. "It's pretty incredible to think that some of the heavy elements all around us, like the precious metals in our phones and computers, are produced in these crazy extreme environments," Anirudh Patel, a doctoral candidate at Columbia University and lead author on a study of these elements, said in a statement. "Magnetar giant flares could be the solution to a problem we've had where there are more heavy elements seen in young galaxies than could be created from neutron star collisions alone." Lighter elements such as hydrogen, helium, and lithium were forged in the Big Bang, while heavier ones were formed through nuclear fusion in stellar cores during stars' lives — or in the aftermath of their explosive deaths. But just how neutron-rich elements that are heavier than iron are made has remained an open question. These elements are thought to form through a series of nuclear reactions known as the rapid neutron capture process, or r-process, which was long theorized to occur only under extreme conditions such as those in supernovas or neutron star mergers. In 2017, astronomers confirmed the r-process for the first time during the observed merger of two neutron stars. However, such collisions are so rare that they cannot fully account for the abundance of heavy elements in the universe and neutron star mergers happen too late in the universe's history to explain the earliest gold and other heavy elements. But the extreme neutron star flares that can forge these elements are much older. "The interesting thing about these giant flares is that they can occur really early in galactic history," Patel added. To study these processes, the NYC scientists turned to magnetars, whose magnetic fields are trillions of times stronger than Earth's. These stars occasionally produce "flares" — bursts of energy caused by the sudden release of magnetic energy, typically triggered by the rearrangement or decay of their magnetic fields. The team calculated that a magnetar's giant flare could create the right conditions for r-process elements to form, producing highly unstable radioactive nuclei that decay into stable heavy elements such as gold. Excitingly, the NYC team was able to link their calculations to a mysterious observation made in 2004 of a bright flash of light from the magnetar SGR 1806–20. Initially, the event didn't seem unusual — until researchers realized the flare's total energy was roughly a thousand times greater than that of typical bursts. "The event had kind of been forgotten over the years," said Brian Metzger, a senior research scientist at the CCA and a professor at Columbia University. "But we very quickly realized that our model was a perfect fit for it." "I wasn't thinking about anything else for the next week or two," Patel said in a NASA statement. "It was the only thing on my mind." By combining observations of SGR 1806–20's 2004 flare with their model, Metzger, Patel, and their colleagues estimated that the event likely produced around 2 million billion billion (you read that right) kilograms of heavy elements — roughly the mass of Mars or 27 moons! While such flares could account for about 10% of all heavy elements in our galaxy, the researchers note that the origins of the remaining 90% remain uncertain. "We can't exclude that there could be third or fourth sites out there that we just haven't seen yet," Metzger said. RELATED STORIES: — What happens inside neutron stars, the universe's densest known objects? — James Webb Space Telescope finds neutron star mergers forge gold in the cosmos: 'It was thrilling' — The most powerful explosions in the universe could reveal where gold comes from Eager to push their discovery further, the team plans to hunt for more magnetar flares using NASA's Compton Spectrometer and Imager mission, slated for launch in 2027 — a mission that could reveal even more secrets about the cosmic origins of gold and other heavy elements. "It's a pretty fundamental question in terms of the origin of complex matter in the universe," Patel said. "It's a fun puzzle that hasn't actually been solved." The team's research was published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters.
Time of India
30-04-2025
- Science
- Time of India
Where does gold come from? NASA has the answer
The Akshaya Tritiya , an annual Jain and Hindu spring festival, is almost here, and what's a more fitting occasion than this to dig deep about gold? Where did your gold earrings come from? Of course, from the store! But, before that? Where were they sourced from? Yes, gold mines. But how did it emerge there? How did they form on Earth? Well, NASA's data may have some clues to offer. What if we tell you that some of the gold in your jewellery or smartphone (yes, your phone has gold in it) might have been made in a magnetar explosion billions of years ago! Sounds wild, but it's possible. Where does gold come from ? We know that hydrogen, helium, and a scant amount of lithium have existed in the universe since the Big Bang. The heavier metals were formed later, as the stars fused lighter elements into heavier ones (up to iron) in their cores. However, how the first elements heavier than iron, such as gold, get created and distributed throughout the universe remained a mystery. A new study by researchers at the Flatiron Institute's Center for Computational Astrophysics in New York suggests some cosmic connection! Using 20-year-old archival data from NASA and European Space Agency telescopes, researchers have found evidence that powerful flares from magnetars could account for up to 10% of elements heavier than iron, including gold. The findings are published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters . The new study found that a single giant flare from a magnetar can produce the mass equivalent of 27 moons' worth of heavy elements, including gold, platinum, and other heavy elements. These elements, which include uranium and strontium, are produced in a set of nuclear reactions known as the rapid neutron-capture process, or r-process. 'This is really just the second time we've ever directly seen proof of where these elements form (the first being neutron star mergers) study co-author Brian Metzger, a senior research scientist at the CCA and a professor at Columbia University, said in a statement. 'It's a substantial leap in our understanding of heavy elements production.' The researchers have unraveled a puzzle dating back to December 2004, when a space telescope detected a bright burst of light from a magnetar. The initial giant flare was so intense that it released more energy in a few seconds than the sun does in a million years. Though the astronomers quickly identified the flare's origin, a smaller signal that appeared 10 minutes later remained unexplained until now. In 2024, Metzger and colleagues calculated that the giant flares could eject material from a magnetar's crust into space, where r-process elements could form. 'It's pretty incredible to think that some of the heavy elements all around us, like the precious metals in our phones and computers, are produced in these crazy extreme environments,' Anirudh Patel, a doctoral candidate at Columbia University and lead author on the new study, said. They found that giant flares from magnetars create unstable, heavy radioactive elements, which then break down into stable ones like gold. As this decay, they emit a glow of light and form new elements. In 2024, the group also calculated that this glow would appear as a burst of gamma rays, a form of highly energized light. When they shared this with gamma-ray astronomers, they discovered that a similar unexplained signal had been seen decades ago. As scientists studying magnetars and those studying element formation rarely work together, no one had previously suggested that the signal might be caused by new element creation. 'The event had kind of been forgotten over the years. But we very quickly realized that our model was a perfect fit for it,' Metzger says. 'The interesting thing about these giant flares is that they can occur really early in galactic history. Magnetar giant flares could be the solution to a problem we've had where there are more heavy elements seen in young galaxies than could be created from neutron star collisions alone,' Patel adds. 100 Days Of Trump: Tariff Tyranny, Zelensky Bashing, Iran Nuclear Threat | 3 Shocking Speeches The researchers are hoping to observe more such flares to understand the contribution of magnetars. NASA's Compton Spectrometer and Imager is expected to launch in 2027, and it could help capture these signals. 'Once a gamma-ray burst is detected, you have to point an ultraviolet telescope at the source within 10 to 15 minutes to see the signal's peak and confirm r-process elements are made there. It'll be a fun chase,' Metzger says. The next time you wear your gold jewellery, thank the universe!
Yahoo
28-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Team led by Rutgers professor makes amazing interstellar discovery. Here's what it means
An international team led by a Rutgers University-New Brunswick astrophysicist has discovered a vast, potentially star-forming cloud of molecular hydrogen — one of the largest structures ever detected near Earth. The cloud, named 'Eos' after the Greek goddess of dawn, is about 300 light years away and is roughly 3,400 times the mass of the sun. It spans a crescent shape about 40 times the diameter of the full moon in the night sky, researchers said. The discovery, outlined in a study published in Nature Astronomy, marks the first time a molecular cloud has been detected using light emitted in the far-ultraviolet spectrum, offering a new method to study the molecular universe. 'This opens up new possibilities for studying the molecular universe,' said Blakesley Burkhart, an associate professor of physics and astronomy at Rutgers and a research scientist at the Flatiron Institute in New York, who led the team. Molecular clouds, made mostly of hydrogen gas, are essential to star and planet formation. Scientists typically detect them through radio or infrared signals from carbon monoxide, but Eos was found by tracking faint far-ultraviolet fluorescence from hydrogen molecules — a first for astronomers. 'This cloud is literally glowing in the dark,' Burkhart said. Discovered using data from the Korean satellite STSAT-1's FIMS-SPEAR instrument, Eos had remained hidden because it is 'CO-dark,' lacking enough carbon monoxide to show up in traditional surveys. Researchers estimate the cloud will evaporate in about 6 million years. The cloud lies at the edge of the Local Bubble, a gas-filled cavity surrounding the solar system. Because of its proximity, Eos offers a rare opportunity to study the early stages of star formation and the behavior of the interstellar medium — the gas and dust filling the space between stars. The discovery could reshape understanding of how galaxies form stars and planets, scientists said. 'The story of the cosmos is a story of the rearrangement of atoms over billions of years,' Burkhart said. 'The hydrogen in Eos has been traveling for 13.6 billion years since the Big Bang.' Burkhart and her colleagues are continuing their search for molecular clouds both near and far. In a separate preprint study using the James Webb Space Telescope, the team reports a tentative discovery of the most distant molecular hydrogen yet observed. 'Using JWST, we may have found the very furthest hydrogen molecules from the sun,' Burkhart said. 'So we have found both some of the closest and farthest using far-ultraviolet emission.' This article originally appeared on Team led by Rutgers professor makes amazing interstellar discovery
