How is gold formed?

Scientists say they have found another way of forming gold

Photo: Visinger/Center of Space Flights named Nasa

Scientists have found that gold in space can be formed not only as a result of collision of neutron stars, as previously thought.

Archival data has evidence that the formation of gold is also a consequence of the activity of neutron stars, which have a powerful magnetic field – magnetarians.

This is stated in a study that Posted in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, informs CNN.

For decades, astronomers have been trying to determine the cosmic origin of the most severe elements, including gold. It is believed that light elements, such as hydrogen and helium, existed at the beginning of the Big Bang. Then the explosions of the stars released heavy elements, which subsequently led to the birth of new stars and planets.

However, the distribution of gold throughout the universe remains a mystery to astrophysicists.

« This is a rather fundamental question about the origin of complex matter in the universe. It is an interesting puzzle that is not actually unraveled »– explained the leading author of the study, Anyrud Pavel.

So far, scientists have believed that gold arises only as a result of the collision of neutron stars, which are at the final stage of evolution and are mainly composed of neutrons. Scientists were witnessing this phenomenon in 2017.

Scientists have estimated that most of these clashes have occurred in the last few billion years. However, the inaudible data of 20 years ago indicate that gold could be formed at the beginning of the birth of the universe.

This is evidenced by the bright flashes of magnetarians. Scientists have found that the stars release the material, the physical explanation of which was still absent.

Now scientists have suggested that the outbreaks are heating and ejecting the material of the bark at high speed, which can contribute to the formation of heavy metals.

The authors of the study decided to find evidence of their idea. To do this, they looked at gamma radiation data from the last flash of magnetarians in 2004.

Only now the astronomers have been able to characterize this information that corresponded to the concept of formation of heavy elements.

« When we created our model and made forecasts, no one knew that the data already contained a signal. No one could imagine that our theoretical ideas would be so good to fit existing information »– said Anyrud Pavel.

The scientist Eleanor Troy, who did not participate in the study, explained that the formation of gold in magnetars is a possible explanation of their gamma light. However, the scientist noted that such stars are « very dirty objects », so eruptions can be accompanied by excess electrons.

Researchers believe that the activity of magnetarians could be a source of up to 10% of the elements heavier than iron, in the Milky Way.

« I would not claim it is a really new source of gold. But this idea is an alternative way to form it »– says Eleanor Troy.

Earlier James Webba Telescope did images of thousands of distant galaxies in one picture.