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Brighter Side of News
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Star flares blast out massive amounts of gold across the galaxy
- A massive eruption from a magnetar in 2004 revealed a new understanding of the universe's heaviest elements like gold and platinum.
- The afterglow following the gamma-ray burst from the magnetar indicated the creation of heavy elements through rapid neutron capture, reshaping theories on their origins.
- Heavy elements like gold and platinum are primarily formed in extreme environments through rapid neutron capture, a process that requires abundant free neutrons.
- Scientists previously believed that such heavy elements were only formed in supernovae or neutron star collisions, until the discovery of magnetar flares as additional contributors.
- Magnetars, highly magnetized stars born from massive star cores, can release enormous energy in giant flares, creating conditions for the formation of heavy elements like gold.
- Detailed nuclear reaction simulations confirmed that gold and other heavy nuclei can form in the ejected material from magnetar giant flares.
- The delayed gamma-ray signal observed after the 2004 magnetar flare matched the expected profile of radioactive decay from newly formed heavy elements like gold.
- Researchers estimated that up to 10 percent of the heavy elements in the galaxy could be attributed to magnetar flares, providing valuable insights into galactic enrichment.
- Magnetar flares could explain the abundance of heavy elements in ancient galaxies with low metallicity, offering a solution to a longstanding astronomical mystery.
- Ongoing research and upcoming missions aim to detect gamma-ray glows in real time, enhancing our understanding of the production of heavy elements in the universe.
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