What makes most of the heavy stuff in the universe then? Colliding neutron stars! Pairs of neutron stars radiate gravitational energy and spiral into each other, finally merging - typically into a black hole. But black holes are notoriously hard to escape, so how does that work?
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Neutron star material is only stable inside neutron stars. When the stars collide, a bunch of stuff sprays out into the surrounding space. Without the vast pressure, it breaks up into heavy nuclei and free neutrons, which proceed to further combine to make heavier elements.
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Most of that would spiral into the resulting black hole, except it's SUPER radioactive! The photons and neutrinos released by the rapid decay of the neutron-rich nuclei into more stable isotopes blast the heavy elements into deep space where they can become part of new planets.
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One neutron star merger can produce 1-5 times the mass of the earth in gold alone! (Not to mention platinum, lead, uranium, tungsten, and the rest of the heavy elements!) Here's a video from PBS that explains in more detail:https://youtu.be/MmgMboWunkI
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So I this all just theoretical? Nope - we've actually seen it happen! You just have to be looking at the right place in the sky and watch for the flash when the gravity wave detectors go off, and you'll see the heavy elements' spectra in the afterglow of the collision!
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The best part about all of this is we've only known about it for a few years. Hell, almost everything in this thread would have been science fiction just a few decades ago!
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I only knew that because of this.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTvgnYGu9bg …
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I guess I'm glad I didn't finish my CCSN thesis...
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Damn, nice read, thanks
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