Thank You, Supernovae!

[space-time]

http://www.ketknbc.com/news/why-gamma-ra...scientists


Incidentally, if not for supernovae, we wouldn't be here.

Every single atom of your body that is not hydrogen or helium was created in the fiery interior of a massive star. The supernova explosion disperses these elements throughout interstellar space, where they become the building material for new planets. When Earth formed out of such materials -- iron, manganese, calcium, silicon, oxygen, nitrogen, carbon, etc. -- organic chemicals, then cells, then organisms, then humans were able to evolve.

[Paul F.]

Technically, elements lighter than Iron can and are formed in large, hot, stars...
However, every element heavier than iron in the universe can only be formed in the violent collapse of a super massive star... The life of which can ONLY end in the massively powerful "rebound" explosion of a supernova.
The remnants of the star, now scattered across huge distances in nebulae, get swept up in forming solar systems.

[Carnos Jax]

You two are soooo right. Not many people know this. Carl Sagan really meant it when he said we are all made of 'star stuff'.

[haikuman]

Carnos Jax wrote:
You two are soooo right. Not many people know this. Carl Sagan really meant it when he said we are all made of 'star stuff'.

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/61665...d_Billions

[Paul F.]

http://www.amazon.com/Black-Warped-Space...0716711532

A somewhat dated, but excellent book covering the life cycle of stars, and what happens to them when they die ( from white dwarf, cyclical nova, neutron star, or supernova and collapse to a black hole.
Very readable. One day, I'll find my copy again.

[Article Accelerator]

Carnos Jax wrote:
You two are soooo right. Not many people know this. Carl Sagan really meant it when he said we are all made of 'star stuff'.

Carl Sagan ripped off that thought from Joni Mitchell:

"We are stardust
Billion year old carbon…"

Woodstock, (released 1969)

[DP]

I thought when I read the title-because of my mindset on this forum-you were liking a new app called "Supernovae"...
The idea we come from from the insides of stars has been around for a long time. Amazing that all this had to occur over a few billion years before we could all be on this forum!