In 2002 DJ Moby released a track called "we are all made of stars", is there any truth to this statement?

Question

This is part of physics homeworks, but i couldn't understand what exactly it is asking. Also in answering this question i have to explain the astrophysical origins of the iron in our blood.

Answer 1

True for sure. Only hydrogen exists without fusion (fusing two or more atomic nuclei). All other elements, are made in stars, hot enough to cause fusion.

One theory is that our solar system blew up billions of years ago. And recollected to form the system we have now. That means we were formed in that star before it blew up, and we are made from its remanents.

As for iron, iron is pretty heavy. It is hard to make. And it is the last thing that can create energy to fuel the sun in a significant way. That means it is abundant in mostly dying stars. Often it is in the core of stars and supernovae occur because of its iron content.

Answer 2

Well, he was paraphrasing the great Carl Sagan, who said "We are all made of star stuff."

All elements heavier than hydrogen and helium (up to iron) were forged by nuclear fusion in the cores of stars; elements heavier than iron were created (via nucleosynthesis) during the stellar death known as a supernova.

Answer 3

When Carl Sagan did the mini-series COSMOS, this was one of his points.

everything is the universe, including people, is made of star stuff.

the same things ( elements, energy) that was flung out in the big bang coalesced into suns, planets, and on the planets the chemicals continued to exists and eventually built up into cells, organisms, all the way to people.

Answer 4

Yes, it's true.

All of the heavier elements of the universe - from helium to the heaviest of natural elements were formed in the middle of stars.  Stars are the only natural places that produce enough heat and pressure to fuse together atomic nuclei, which is what you need to produce new elements.  Considering that we're made from carbon, nitrogen, hydrogen, and oxygen (mostly), the majority of our bodily make-up is basically a bunch of star-farts (the by-products of stars whose lives have come to an end.)  The origin of iron can be explained in the same way.  A star got hot enough to fuse iron nuclei together.  Those iron atoms found themselves near or on a meteor headed for earth when we were in the first few houndred million years of our formation, it lands on the earth, and is there to be integrated into organic living matter.

Humbling, isn't it?

-John