The Loneliest Stars in the Galaxy
Certain stars have a history distinct from all the others around them.
We are made of star stuff, as Carl Sagan told us. The first stars ignited billions of years ago, out of the cold, primordial gas in the dark universe. The stars blazed until they exploded in bursts powerful enough to forge heavy chemical elements. The process repeated itself, over and over, all across space. The new elements found their way into other stars, and then planets, and, eventually, life.
It’s a remarkable cosmic tale, with a recent twist. Some of the stardust has
