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Life begins with the process of star formation.
Except for hydrogen, every single atom of every single element
in our bodies has been manufactured inside stars and then
scattered across the universe in great stellar explosions
known as supernovae, only then to be recycled as part of
us. The hydrogen is primordial material, produced in the
Big Bang, but everything else has been built up in the burning
hearts of stars. We are made of stardust.
Here John Gribbin relates the series of
breakthroughs in astronomy that have led to this almost
unbelievable insight into human origins. He begins his rich
and characteristically accessible account in the 1920s,
when astronomers discovered that the oldest stars are chiefly
composed of hydrogen and helium, produced at the birth of
the universe. Gribbin then describes the seminal work of
the 1950s and 1960s which unlocked the secret of how elements
are created by nuclear fusion inside stars. In fascinating
detail, Stardust goes on to follow the only recently
understood life cycle of a star to its climactic end: supernova,
the dramatic death of a star. During these explosions, a
single star briefly shines as brightly as a hundred billion
suns. The resulting ash is spread far and wide throughout
the cosmos, forming new generations of stars, planets, and
people.
Focusing on the relationship between the
universe and the Earth, Gribbin eloquently explains how
the physical structure of the Universe has produced conditions
ideal for life. In a Universe where the necessary processes
operate with such prolific abandon, life-forms like ourselves
cannot be unique.
John Gribbin trained as an astrophysicist
at the University of Cambridge and is currently Visiting
Fellow in Astronomy at the University of Sussex. He is the
author of many best-selling books, including In Search
of Shrodinger's Cat.
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