Antarctica, a continent situated in the southernmost part of the earth, defines the Southern Hemisphere as it holds the south pole.
Researchers made a remarkable discovery at German Kohnen Station located in Antarctica after Antarctic snow showed traces of interstellar space dust.
This was after more than five hundred (500) kilograms, or eleven hundred pounds (1,100 lbs) of surface snow was analyzed.
Antarctica’s discovery linked to past supernova
Supernova is deemed to be the most massive explosion ever witnessed by humans. Expressly, this happens after a star explodes and the considerable blast is characterized by extremely bright light.
The findings in Antarctica, associate the cosmic dust to a past supernova that occurred millions of years before.
The interstellar voyage witnessed brought the dust to the specific place where the discovery was made.
The dust is remarkable as it contains the rare iron isotope known as iron-60, often emitted by supernovas.
Antarctica’s German Kohnen Station
The scientists asserted that the findings made in this station are authentic based on a high likelihood that the snow was not contaminated.
The station is located in one of Antarctica’s high-altitude areas.
Following the discovery, the investigators ensured the snow was still frozen and sent it to a Munich lab. At this location, dust particles were isolated after the snow was filtered and melted.
As a result, the information deduced was that the snow had signs of space matter.
The discovery of the scarce iron-60 isotope was carried out utilizing an accelerator mass spectrometer.
The scientists carried out intensive research so that they could ascertain whether the space dust originated from the earth’s solar system or a past supernova.
They concluded that it was from a supernova because if irradiated dust is exposed to cosmic radiation, another isotope is generated.
Space is dusty
Space is usually dusty, and Antarctica’s findings assert this ideology.
Space has experienced several supernovas that have expelled particles. As a result, they have been shed from comets, asteroids, and planets.
Presently, the earth’s solar system is passing through the Local Interstellar Cloud (LIC), a huge cloud comprising of space dust.
This interaction could be instrumental in showing how cosmic dust interrelates with the sun and planets.
Conversely, more space studies are being carried out. For instance, it has been revealed that Tardigrades are expected to be the first life to thrive on the moon.
