An international team of scientists from the United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates has concluded that the first supernova created large amounts of water in the early Universe. The study was published on the non-peer-reviewed scientific materials portal arXiv.
Astronomers divide stars into populations based on their age and metallicity; where “metals” are elements other than hydrogen and helium. The youngest and most metal-rich stars, such as the Sun, are called Population I. Older stars with less metal content are called Population II. The oldest stars in the universe are known as Population III (Pop III).
In the new study, the team simulated the explosions of small (13 solar masses) and large (200 solar masses) early stars.
According to the simulation results, the explosions of Pop III stars significantly enriched the environment with water. The molecular clouds in the remnants of these stars contained 10-30 times more moisture than the dispersed molecular clouds in the current Milky Way.
Accordingly, after 100-200 million years, there was enough water and other elements in the Universe for life to form.
Scientists stated that their discoveries do not mean that life in space could emerge so early. But it’s also possible that most of the water around us came from the first supernova.
Earlier astronomers to create an important factor in the creation of young stars.
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Source: Gazeta
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