A theoretical study from last year traces out how certain stellar corpses known as white dwarfs could accumulate a critical mass of uranium that would trigger a massive supernova explosion. ScienceMagArchives
A thermonuclear bomb might be ticking deep in the cores of some dead stars. A new theoretical study traces out how certain stellar corpses known as white dwarfs could accumulate a critical mass of uranium that would trigger a massive supernova explosion.
At the end of their lifetimes, stars up to 10 times more massive than our Sun puff up and shed their outer layers. This leaves behind a searingly hot, Earth-size core composed almost entirely of naked atomic nuclei and free electrons. Uranium-235, a rare isotope of the element, can spontaneously split, releasing neutrons and energy. If there is a critical mass of the isotope nearby, the neutrons strike other uranium-235 nuclei in a chain reaction that leads to a powerful blast.
Concentrations of uranium-235 inside these crystals would be alarmingly high."Suddenly instead of being one in a trillion nuclei, you have one in 10," Caplan says."And that means you could have a bomb."
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