Long ago, in a galaxy far, far away, gold was born.
It may sound like science fiction, but the idea that Earth’s gold came from space is a well-established, widely accepted scientific theory.
According to NASA scientists, it is likely gold did not come from the formation of our planet, but from above — specifically two superdense dead neutron stars crashing into each other, which caused an explosion of cosmic proportions, and the creation of almost all our planet’s gold.
Edo Berger of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and the lead author of a new study supporting this model, said in a statement: “We estimate that the amount of gold produced and ejected during the merger of the two neutron stars may be as large as 10 moon masses — quite a lot of bling!”
While ten moons made of solid gold may seem like a lot, in relation to the immensity of the known universe, it’s actually quite a little. Gold is not just a rare metal here on Earth, but in the cosmos at large.
How Did So Much Gold End Up On Our Tiny Planet?
Meteorites, says the world’s leading earth scientists.
Meteorites are space debris that fall to earth after asteroids disintegrate in the atmosphere. These space rocks often yield significant amounts of precious metals like platinum, iridium, rhenium, osmium, ruthenium, palladium, germanium, gold, and the extremely rare rhodium.
Researchers have discovered clear evidence that the Earth’s reserves of precious metals are leftovers from a torrential meteorite shower more than 200 million years after the formation of our planet. As land masses began to emerge and Earth as we know it began to take shape, molten iron sank to the center to make the core, taking with it a vast majority of the planet’s precious metals.
However, either some small traces were left at the surface, or another meteorite containing a fresh supply of gold and platinum struck Earth after the core’s formation, giving us all of the gold reserves found in the history of humanity — and those yet to be discovered.
In paraphrasing the great American scientist Carl Sagan — made famous by his 1980 PBS show Cosmos: A Personal Voyage — Berger sums up the origin of gold, saying, “We are all star stuff, and our jewelry is colliding-star stuff.”
Mining Gold from Space
As if gold from outer space doesn’t already sound like make-believe, a couple of mining firms have begun talks about prospecting for gold and platinum on passing asteroids. It seems far-fetched, but governments at least believe it may have a future. NASA is aiming to put astronauts on an asteroid in under a decade and on Mars by the 2030s.
And those who continue to be critical of the proposal are told these skills may come in handy if we need to pull a play straight out of the movie Armageddon and stop an asteroid to avoid going the way of the dinosaurs.
Gold is a truly remarkable metal. Since the days of early man, this colliding-star stuff has been highly valued and prized, and it will continue to have appeal far, far into the future.
To own your own piece of space rock — and back your savings with something that will retain and increase its value in the long term — consider investing in precious metals like gold, platinum and palladium.
Get started by browsing the gold bullion products Provident Metals has to offer.
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