Star Explosion Reveals New Space Ingredients

Handout - Scientists have spotted chlorine and potassium hiding inside the remains of a blown-up star for the first time. Using Japan’s XRISM space telescope, they found these elements inside the giant cloud of debris left behind by the supernova called Cassiopeia A. The explosion happened about 11,000 light-years from Earth, but it is still giving up new secrets today. The find shows how stars don’t just light up the sky, they also make many of the elements that help build planets and life. Even long after a star explodes, it can still teach us something new about the universe. This discovery was published in a scientific paper on December 4 this year, and the image was released on January 28, 2024, using data from NASA’s Chandra telescope along with Hubble, Webb and Spitzer. Photo by Image credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO; Optical: NASA/ESA/STScI; IR: NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI/Milisavljevic et al., NASA/JPL/CalTech; Image Processing: NASA/CXC/SAO/J. Schmidt and K. Arcand via ABACAPRESS.COM