Mysterious Old Gold Found in Universe Possibly Solved: Responding to a Century-Old Riddle
In a groundbreaking study, scientists propose that powerful flares from magnetars, highly magnetic neutron stars, may have been instrumental in forming gold and other heavy elements in the early universe, much earlier than previously thought possible. The research suggests these flares may have contributed up to 10% of all elements heavier than iron in the Milky Way.
The study, published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, sheds light on a longstanding mystery regarding the origins of the universe's vast amounts of gold. While scientists knew that mergers of collapsed stars and black holes could discharge heavy metals, they were unable to explain how these elements formed in the universe's early days.
In 2017, astronomers observed the merger of two superdense stellar corpses, known as neutron stars, 130 million light-years away. The cataclysmic collision emitted a flash of light containing signatures of heavy metals, including gold. However, the event couldn't account for the formation of gold and heavy metals in the universe's early days since not enough time had passed for neutron star mergers to occur.
Now, researchers believe they can finally explain the early creation and distribution of these elements through the rapid neutron capture process (r-process) in magnetar flares. According to the study's authors, the extreme density of neutrons in a giant flare could transform light atomic nuclei into much heavier ones, triggering multiple nuclear decay reactions within a single atom.
The researchers used 20-year-old data from NASA and European Space Agency telescopes to identify the universe's hidden source of gold and heavy metals. They narrowed their search to magnetars based on the results of a 2024 study, which found that magnetar giant flares can eject heavy metals from the crust of neutron stars during powerful bursts of radiation, known as starquakes.
The last magnetar giant flare observed from Earth was in 2004. Researchers noted a small gamma ray signal from the flare, which they initially dismissed. However, further analysis revealed that this signal mirrors what scientists might expect to see if a magnetar created and expelled heavy metals in a giant flare, supporting the new theory.
"It's answering one of the questions of the century," said study co-author Eric Burns, an assistant professor of physics and astronomy at Louisiana State University.
The next step for the researchers is to study older magnetar giant flare data and await the launch of NASA's Compton Spectrometer and Imager (COSI) mission in 2027, which will study energetic phenomena in the cosmos, including magnetar giant flares, to further confirm the theory.
The study adds to a growing body of evidence suggesting that magnetars play a crucial role in heavy element formation in the universe. As they delve deeper into this mystery, scientists hope to uncover more about our universe's evolution.
The study published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters suggests that magnetar flares, powerful events from highly magnetic neutron stars, could have contributed to the formation of gold and other heavy elements in the early universe, a longstanding mystery in space-and-astronomy. Leveraging 20-year-old data from NASA and European Space Agency telescopes, researchers believe they have identified a hidden source of these elements, further solidifying the theory that science and technology play a vital role in understanding the origins of the universe's heavy elements.
