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IPFS News Link • Science, Medicine and Technology

Rare Meteorite Grains May be from Supernova That Sparked Solar System

• Space.com
These grains may even come from the same star explosion that sparked the formation of the solar system, scientists say.
 
Both meteorites were found in Antarctica, and appear to date from before the solar system was born 4.6 billion years ago. Each contains a single grain of silica (SiO2, which is the main ingredient of sand). The chemical signature of these grains is identical, and extremely rare — so rare, in fact, that scientists suspect both grains came from a single supernova. This type of supernova occurs when a massive star runs out of fuel for nuclear fusion and collapses in on itself in a giant explosion.
 

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