Scientists Find Evidence Of Earliest Stars In The Universe
- 10 years ago
Using theoretical models of astrophysics, astronomers are working to understand how the early universe might have looked. Now, experts think they might have caught a glimpse of one of the oldest stars ever discovered in the universe.
Using theoretical models of astrophysics, astronomers are working to understand how the early universe might have looked.
Now, experts think they might have caught a glimpse of one of the oldest stars ever discovered in the universe.
Reports have called the discovery a ‘stellar fossil,’ because chemical traces of the star were found within the body of another old star.
Researchers analyzed the light from distant stars to figure out what they are made of, and the light they observed from the newly discovered star reportedly has a unique signature.
Lead author of the study Doctor Wako Aoki, from the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan is quoted as saying: “This is quite a unique star, with a very peculiar chemical pattern that has never been found previously. We studied stars with extremely low metallicity, but the iron abundance of this star is not as low.”
It has low levels of heavy elements such as carbon and magnesium, but it also doesn’t have much cobalt.
According to researchers, this combination of elements means that the star might be from the oldest group of population III stars, that underwent a rare thermonuclear explosion called a pair-instability supernova.
Astronomers observed the star using the Subaru Telescope located in the state of Hawaii.
Using theoretical models of astrophysics, astronomers are working to understand how the early universe might have looked.
Now, experts think they might have caught a glimpse of one of the oldest stars ever discovered in the universe.
Reports have called the discovery a ‘stellar fossil,’ because chemical traces of the star were found within the body of another old star.
Researchers analyzed the light from distant stars to figure out what they are made of, and the light they observed from the newly discovered star reportedly has a unique signature.
Lead author of the study Doctor Wako Aoki, from the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan is quoted as saying: “This is quite a unique star, with a very peculiar chemical pattern that has never been found previously. We studied stars with extremely low metallicity, but the iron abundance of this star is not as low.”
It has low levels of heavy elements such as carbon and magnesium, but it also doesn’t have much cobalt.
According to researchers, this combination of elements means that the star might be from the oldest group of population III stars, that underwent a rare thermonuclear explosion called a pair-instability supernova.
Astronomers observed the star using the Subaru Telescope located in the state of Hawaii.