Sign up for CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more. Astronomers have ...

An unusual bright blast of light detected by multiple telescopes in December 2021 was the result of a rare cosmic explosion that created a wealth of heavy elements such as gold and platinum.

Gold, a rare and heavy element, originates from cosmic events like neutron star mergers, where the rapid neutron capture process forms heavy elements. Present on Earth since its formation ...

creating heavy elements like gold, platinum, and lead, further supporting the role of neutron star collisions in cosmic element production. However, researchers now point out that there may be an ...

we still don’t fully understand where gold comes from. We can find it on Earth, of course. But where in the universe it was first made has long been a cosmic-scale mystery. There is no shortage ...

Brian Metzger of the Flatiron Institute calls this discovery a “cosmic game-changer”—magnetar flares may account for up to 10% of the galaxy’s gold. The r-process doesn’t just make gold ...