1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:03,680 Welcome back to Cosmos and upon Space and Astronomy series. 2 00:00:03,680 --> 00:00:07,160 You know, have you ever just looked up at the night sky 3 00:00:07,160 --> 00:00:08,920 and thought about where it all came from? 4 00:00:08,920 --> 00:00:09,800 Oh, absolutely. 5 00:00:09,800 --> 00:00:11,280 I mean, it's amazing, isn't it? 6 00:00:11,280 --> 00:00:13,760 All that stuff up there, the Earth, the other planets, 7 00:00:13,760 --> 00:00:16,040 even the atoms that make us. 8 00:00:16,040 --> 00:00:16,760 Right. 9 00:00:16,760 --> 00:00:17,720 It's mind boggling. 10 00:00:17,720 --> 00:00:20,680 And the thing is, the answer, at least part of it, 11 00:00:20,680 --> 00:00:23,560 lies in these crazy events called supernovae. 12 00:00:23,560 --> 00:00:27,160 Yeah, supernovae, those huge star explosions. 13 00:00:27,160 --> 00:00:30,560 You wouldn't think they'd have much to do with creating things. 14 00:00:30,560 --> 00:00:31,520 Yeah. 15 00:00:31,520 --> 00:00:34,200 I mean, they get kind of known for, well, destroying things, 16 00:00:34,200 --> 00:00:34,720 right? 17 00:00:34,720 --> 00:00:35,240 That's true. 18 00:00:35,240 --> 00:00:37,040 But that's the really cool thing about them. 19 00:00:37,040 --> 00:00:40,040 They're both endings and beginnings at the same time. 20 00:00:40,040 --> 00:00:41,640 Like, yeah, they destroy a star. 21 00:00:41,640 --> 00:00:43,680 But when they do that, they actually 22 00:00:43,680 --> 00:00:46,880 scatter the ingredients that you need to make new worlds. 23 00:00:46,880 --> 00:00:48,440 I mean, even life itself. 24 00:00:48,440 --> 00:00:50,840 Like a cosmic phoenix or something rising 25 00:00:50,840 --> 00:00:51,640 from the ashes. 26 00:00:51,640 --> 00:00:52,400 Exactly. 27 00:00:52,400 --> 00:00:54,240 So tell me, how do you think a supernova 28 00:00:54,240 --> 00:00:55,800 helps with planet formation? 29 00:00:55,800 --> 00:00:58,360 What happens during one that's so important? 30 00:00:58,360 --> 00:01:00,240 Well, that's what I'm hoping you can explain. 31 00:01:00,240 --> 00:01:04,040 OK, well, imagine a star, way bigger than our sun. 32 00:01:04,040 --> 00:01:05,200 It's at the end of its life. 33 00:01:05,200 --> 00:01:08,840 And it's been fusing elements, lighter ones, like hydrogen, 34 00:01:08,840 --> 00:01:10,280 into heavier ones. 35 00:01:10,280 --> 00:01:12,160 It's been doing that its whole life, building up 36 00:01:12,160 --> 00:01:14,000 to iron in its core. 37 00:01:14,000 --> 00:01:16,000 But then it runs out of fuel. 38 00:01:16,000 --> 00:01:16,720 Oh, no. 39 00:01:16,720 --> 00:01:18,880 So no more energy to keep everything together. 40 00:01:18,880 --> 00:01:19,800 Right, exactly. 41 00:01:19,800 --> 00:01:22,240 And when that happens, the core just collapses, 42 00:01:22,240 --> 00:01:23,560 you know, under its own gravity. 43 00:01:23,560 --> 00:01:24,960 And then, boom, supernova. 44 00:01:24,960 --> 00:01:26,200 But it's not just an explosion. 45 00:01:26,200 --> 00:01:29,120 It's a wave of energy, a huge amount of energy, 46 00:01:29,120 --> 00:01:30,720 that spreads through the star. 47 00:01:30,720 --> 00:01:34,680 And the important part is, for a short time, just a moment, 48 00:01:34,680 --> 00:01:36,840 things get so intense that it can actually 49 00:01:36,840 --> 00:01:39,200 create elements that are heavier than iron. 50 00:01:39,200 --> 00:01:39,680 Whoa, wait. 51 00:01:39,680 --> 00:01:41,520 So that's where heavier elements come from. 52 00:01:41,520 --> 00:01:42,160 Things like what? 53 00:01:42,160 --> 00:01:45,200 Like gold or uranium, the stuff we have here on Earth. 54 00:01:45,200 --> 00:01:45,720 Exactly. 55 00:01:45,720 --> 00:01:48,560 Think of it like a giant cosmic forge, right? 56 00:01:48,560 --> 00:01:50,960 When the star was alive, it could only make elements up 57 00:01:50,960 --> 00:01:53,200 to iron through fusion. 58 00:01:53,200 --> 00:01:55,640 But a supernova is so powerful that it 59 00:01:55,640 --> 00:01:57,920 allows these other processes to happen, 60 00:01:57,920 --> 00:02:00,680 things like nucleosynthesis and neutron capture. 61 00:02:00,680 --> 00:02:02,960 OK, those sound like some complicated science terms. 62 00:02:02,960 --> 00:02:04,600 Can you break those down for me a bit? 63 00:02:04,600 --> 00:02:05,160 Sure. 64 00:02:05,160 --> 00:02:09,200 Nucleosynthesis basically means making new atomic nuclei. 65 00:02:09,200 --> 00:02:11,320 And it can happen during a supernova 66 00:02:11,320 --> 00:02:14,480 because atoms are smashing into each other super fast 67 00:02:14,480 --> 00:02:16,160 under all that pressure. 68 00:02:16,160 --> 00:02:18,760 That can fuse them together and make heavier elements. 69 00:02:18,760 --> 00:02:21,240 So it's like a cosmic particle accelerator. 70 00:02:21,240 --> 00:02:23,360 What about neutron capture? 71 00:02:23,360 --> 00:02:24,720 That one's a bit different. 72 00:02:24,720 --> 00:02:28,280 See, in a supernova, there are tons of neutrons flying around. 73 00:02:28,280 --> 00:02:31,760 And some of those neutrons get absorbed by atomic nuclei. 74 00:02:31,760 --> 00:02:34,200 So when that happens, the nucleus gets heavier. 75 00:02:34,200 --> 00:02:36,480 And that can change it into a whole different element. 76 00:02:36,480 --> 00:02:37,000 Wow. 77 00:02:37,000 --> 00:02:39,360 So the atoms are basically grabbing these neutrons 78 00:02:39,360 --> 00:02:41,880 and bulking up and becoming something new. 79 00:02:41,880 --> 00:02:42,800 Wild. 80 00:02:42,800 --> 00:02:46,480 But OK, how does all this stuff, this new material, 81 00:02:46,480 --> 00:02:48,120 how does it get to planets? 82 00:02:48,120 --> 00:02:50,000 I mean, the planets aren't forming right next 83 00:02:50,000 --> 00:02:50,760 to the supernova. 84 00:02:50,760 --> 00:02:52,400 That's where the scattering comes in. 85 00:02:52,400 --> 00:02:55,760 See, the force of the supernova blasts all the stellar material 86 00:02:55,760 --> 00:02:56,480 out into space. 87 00:02:56,480 --> 00:02:59,520 And remember, that includes all those newly made heavy elements. 88 00:02:59,520 --> 00:03:01,240 And it travels huge distances. 89 00:03:01,240 --> 00:03:03,160 We're talking immense distances. 90 00:03:03,160 --> 00:03:06,640 It ends up in these giant clouds of gas and dust 91 00:03:06,640 --> 00:03:08,320 that are between the stars. 92 00:03:08,320 --> 00:03:10,520 Astronomers call it the interstellar medium. 93 00:03:10,520 --> 00:03:13,400 So it's like the supernova is seeding the galaxy, 94 00:03:13,400 --> 00:03:16,120 giving it the building blocks to make new planets. 95 00:03:16,120 --> 00:03:16,880 Precisely. 96 00:03:16,880 --> 00:03:18,160 And that's not even all of it. 97 00:03:18,160 --> 00:03:20,880 This material, it doesn't just float around forever. 98 00:03:20,880 --> 00:03:23,720 It eventually clumps together into giant clouds 99 00:03:23,720 --> 00:03:25,880 we call those molecular clouds. 100 00:03:25,880 --> 00:03:26,640 And you know what? 101 00:03:26,640 --> 00:03:29,240 Those are the birthplaces of new stars and planets. 102 00:03:29,240 --> 00:03:31,160 Oh, so the supernova actually helps start 103 00:03:31,160 --> 00:03:32,720 the process of making planets. 104 00:03:32,720 --> 00:03:33,440 You got it. 105 00:03:33,440 --> 00:03:35,560 It can even play a role in triggering 106 00:03:35,560 --> 00:03:39,040 the formation of new stars and whole new solar systems. 107 00:03:39,040 --> 00:03:40,200 I'm seeing a theme here. 108 00:03:40,200 --> 00:03:41,200 Yeah. 109 00:03:41,200 --> 00:03:44,640 Sounds like supernovae are some serious cosmic architects. 110 00:03:44,640 --> 00:03:45,400 You could say that. 111 00:03:45,400 --> 00:03:47,560 It's not just about getting the ball rolling, though. 112 00:03:47,560 --> 00:03:50,360 Supernovae actually contribute to the diversity of planets 113 00:03:50,360 --> 00:03:51,720 that we see out there, too. 114 00:03:51,720 --> 00:03:52,880 Oh, OK. 115 00:03:52,880 --> 00:03:54,360 What do you mean by diversity? 116 00:03:54,360 --> 00:03:55,520 Well, think about it. 117 00:03:55,520 --> 00:03:59,040 Without those heavier elements that supernovae make, 118 00:03:59,040 --> 00:04:01,600 we wouldn't have the ingredients for, well, 119 00:04:01,600 --> 00:04:03,720 rocky planets like Earth. 120 00:04:03,720 --> 00:04:07,440 I mean, you need silicon to make rocks, iron for a planet's 121 00:04:07,440 --> 00:04:09,240 core, all those things. 122 00:04:09,240 --> 00:04:12,120 And you need heavy elements for the cores of gas giants. 123 00:04:12,120 --> 00:04:14,560 That's how they hold on to their thick atmospheres. 124 00:04:14,560 --> 00:04:18,200 And of course, well, no heavy elements means no, us. 125 00:04:18,200 --> 00:04:19,360 So it's all connected. 126 00:04:19,360 --> 00:04:20,860 It's kind of blowing my mind a little. 127 00:04:20,860 --> 00:04:22,880 It sounds like without supernovae, 128 00:04:22,880 --> 00:04:25,440 our solar system might not even exist at all. 129 00:04:25,440 --> 00:04:26,520 It's true. 130 00:04:26,520 --> 00:04:28,160 And get this. 131 00:04:28,160 --> 00:04:30,520 There's evidence that suggests our own solar system 132 00:04:30,520 --> 00:04:32,200 has a connection to supernovae. 133 00:04:32,200 --> 00:04:33,760 OK, now you've really got me interested. 134 00:04:33,760 --> 00:04:34,360 Tell me more. 135 00:04:34,360 --> 00:04:35,860 OK, well, scientists have actually 136 00:04:35,860 --> 00:04:38,800 found traces of these things called short-lived radioactive 137 00:04:38,800 --> 00:04:42,320 isotopes, things like aluminum-26 and iron-60. 138 00:04:42,320 --> 00:04:44,760 And they found them in these really old meteorites. 139 00:04:44,760 --> 00:04:45,280 Huh. 140 00:04:45,280 --> 00:04:46,720 OK, and what do those tell us? 141 00:04:46,720 --> 00:04:48,240 Well, the thing is, those isotopes 142 00:04:48,240 --> 00:04:49,840 don't stick around for very long. 143 00:04:49,840 --> 00:04:52,040 I mean, in a cosmic sense, right? 144 00:04:52,040 --> 00:04:54,160 So the fact that we found them means 145 00:04:54,160 --> 00:04:57,120 they must have been created pretty recently, relatively 146 00:04:57,120 --> 00:04:58,520 speaking, of course. 147 00:04:58,520 --> 00:05:00,480 And the only place those kinds of isotopes 148 00:05:00,480 --> 00:05:02,840 could have been made is in a supernova. 149 00:05:02,840 --> 00:05:06,080 So it's like finding a fingerprint at a crime scene. 150 00:05:06,080 --> 00:05:08,000 It proves the supernova was nearby, right? 151 00:05:08,000 --> 00:05:08,520 Yeah. 152 00:05:08,520 --> 00:05:11,360 It's like a timestamp telling us a supernova went off 153 00:05:11,360 --> 00:05:13,720 right before our solar system began to form. 154 00:05:13,720 --> 00:05:14,760 It's pretty cool, right? 155 00:05:14,760 --> 00:05:15,520 But there's more. 156 00:05:15,520 --> 00:05:17,680 Remember how we talked about supernova shock waves 157 00:05:17,680 --> 00:05:18,960 compressing gas clouds? 158 00:05:18,960 --> 00:05:19,800 Yeah. 159 00:05:19,800 --> 00:05:20,680 That was amazing. 160 00:05:20,680 --> 00:05:22,880 Well, think about the solar nebula, you know? 161 00:05:22,880 --> 00:05:26,240 That cloud of gas and dust that our sun and planets formed 162 00:05:26,240 --> 00:05:26,920 from. 163 00:05:26,920 --> 00:05:30,600 It was probably, well, most likely given a little kickstart 164 00:05:30,600 --> 00:05:31,720 by one of those shock waves. 165 00:05:31,720 --> 00:05:32,360 It's amazing. 166 00:05:32,360 --> 00:05:34,960 It's this incredibly destructive force. 167 00:05:34,960 --> 00:05:37,560 But it also gives this, I don't know, 168 00:05:37,560 --> 00:05:39,200 subtle nudge to start things. 169 00:05:39,200 --> 00:05:40,560 It's like a delicate balance. 170 00:05:40,560 --> 00:05:41,300 It really is. 171 00:05:41,300 --> 00:05:43,400 The universe is full of paradoxes like that. 172 00:05:43,400 --> 00:05:45,240 It's what makes it so fascinating. 173 00:05:45,240 --> 00:05:47,060 And speaking of fascinating, think 174 00:05:47,060 --> 00:05:49,480 about all the heavy elements we have here on Earth. 175 00:05:49,480 --> 00:05:51,960 Iron, gold, uranium. 176 00:05:51,960 --> 00:05:55,360 All of those were created in a supernova billions of years 177 00:05:55,360 --> 00:05:55,880 ago. 178 00:05:55,880 --> 00:05:57,040 It's just amazing to me. 179 00:05:57,040 --> 00:05:59,720 I mean, something as destructive as a supernova 180 00:05:59,720 --> 00:06:03,680 actually created the stuff that makes up, well, everything. 181 00:06:03,680 --> 00:06:06,840 The planet, us, even the things we think 182 00:06:06,840 --> 00:06:08,840 are valuable and special like gold. 183 00:06:08,840 --> 00:06:10,880 It really highlights how everything in the universe 184 00:06:10,880 --> 00:06:12,000 is connected. 185 00:06:12,000 --> 00:06:14,800 Destruction and creation are two sides of the same coin. 186 00:06:14,800 --> 00:06:16,960 They're both part of the process. 187 00:06:16,960 --> 00:06:19,440 Supernovae might destroy stars, but they're also 188 00:06:19,440 --> 00:06:22,560 what gives us new worlds and possibly new life. 189 00:06:22,560 --> 00:06:23,400 Yeah. 190 00:06:23,400 --> 00:06:26,480 So we've got all this evidence that supernovae played a role 191 00:06:26,480 --> 00:06:29,280 in how our solar system formed. 192 00:06:29,280 --> 00:06:31,880 But I'm guessing this isn't just something that happened here. 193 00:06:31,880 --> 00:06:33,440 It happens all over the galaxy, right? 194 00:06:33,440 --> 00:06:33,960 Oh, yeah. 195 00:06:33,960 --> 00:06:35,000 Absolutely. 196 00:06:35,000 --> 00:06:37,800 Astronomers have looked at protoplanetary disks. 197 00:06:37,800 --> 00:06:40,000 Those are the swirling disks of gas and dust 198 00:06:40,000 --> 00:06:42,200 where planets form around young stars. 199 00:06:42,200 --> 00:06:43,640 And they've found that a lot of them 200 00:06:43,640 --> 00:06:44,960 are full of these heavy elements. 201 00:06:44,960 --> 00:06:46,520 And they're coming from supernovae. 202 00:06:46,520 --> 00:06:47,320 Exactly. 203 00:06:47,320 --> 00:06:49,120 It's a pretty clear sign that supernovae 204 00:06:49,120 --> 00:06:52,160 are shaping planetary systems throughout the galaxy. 205 00:06:52,160 --> 00:06:53,480 They're not just local events. 206 00:06:53,480 --> 00:06:55,920 They're affecting things on a huge scale. 207 00:06:55,920 --> 00:06:58,600 It's like they're these galactic gardeners, 208 00:06:58,600 --> 00:07:02,040 scattering seeds for new worlds to grow all across the cosmos. 209 00:07:02,040 --> 00:07:04,400 I like that, galactic gardeners. 210 00:07:04,400 --> 00:07:08,240 But we've talked a lot about the good things supernovae do. 211 00:07:08,240 --> 00:07:11,360 But earlier, you said that a supernova too close to a planet 212 00:07:11,360 --> 00:07:13,360 could be bad news. 213 00:07:13,360 --> 00:07:15,200 So how close is too close? 214 00:07:15,200 --> 00:07:15,880 That's a tough one. 215 00:07:15,880 --> 00:07:18,720 It depends on a bunch of things, like how big the supernova is, 216 00:07:18,720 --> 00:07:21,120 what type it is, what kind of planet we're talking about, 217 00:07:21,120 --> 00:07:24,120 if it has a magnetic field, a thick atmosphere, 218 00:07:24,120 --> 00:07:25,080 a lot of things. 219 00:07:25,080 --> 00:07:26,960 But in general, if a supernova goes off 220 00:07:26,960 --> 00:07:29,880 within, say, 50 light years of a planet, 221 00:07:29,880 --> 00:07:31,080 things could get pretty bad. 222 00:07:31,080 --> 00:07:33,720 50 light years, that's still incredibly far. 223 00:07:33,720 --> 00:07:34,320 It is huge. 224 00:07:34,320 --> 00:07:35,120 I mean, for us, right. 225 00:07:35,120 --> 00:07:36,960 But on a galactic scale, it's not that far. 226 00:07:36,960 --> 00:07:37,760 Don't forget. 227 00:07:37,760 --> 00:07:39,880 Supernovae release massive amounts of energy. 228 00:07:39,880 --> 00:07:41,560 We're talking about intense radiation 229 00:07:41,560 --> 00:07:44,160 and super powerful shock waves that can 230 00:07:44,160 --> 00:07:45,800 travel across huge distances. 231 00:07:45,800 --> 00:07:48,120 What would happen to a planet if a supernova went off 232 00:07:48,120 --> 00:07:49,200 that close to it? 233 00:07:49,200 --> 00:07:54,080 Well, it could range from losing its atmosphere to, well, 234 00:07:54,080 --> 00:07:56,160 basically getting completely destroyed. 235 00:07:56,160 --> 00:08:00,480 Imagine a planet with a thin atmosphere, like Mars. 236 00:08:00,480 --> 00:08:02,520 That radiation and those shock waves 237 00:08:02,520 --> 00:08:04,280 could just blow the whole atmosphere away, 238 00:08:04,280 --> 00:08:06,760 leaving it completely barren and exposed. 239 00:08:06,760 --> 00:08:07,800 Oh, wow. 240 00:08:07,800 --> 00:08:08,680 So that's pretty bad. 241 00:08:08,680 --> 00:08:12,160 But what about a planet with a thick atmosphere, like Earth? 242 00:08:12,160 --> 00:08:13,480 Would it be safe? 243 00:08:13,480 --> 00:08:15,000 Well, not necessarily. 244 00:08:15,000 --> 00:08:18,320 It might actually be even worse for a planet like ours. 245 00:08:18,320 --> 00:08:18,960 Think about it. 246 00:08:18,960 --> 00:08:21,960 All that radiation could cause huge wildfires, 247 00:08:21,960 --> 00:08:25,080 destroy the ozone layer, and maybe even boil away 248 00:08:25,080 --> 00:08:25,600 the oceans. 249 00:08:25,600 --> 00:08:27,160 It would be an apocalypse, basically. 250 00:08:27,160 --> 00:08:27,840 Wow. 251 00:08:27,840 --> 00:08:29,560 OK, I'm officially terrified. 252 00:08:29,560 --> 00:08:31,680 I mean, it makes you think about how fragile life is. 253 00:08:31,680 --> 00:08:33,960 So how likely is it that a planet will actually 254 00:08:33,960 --> 00:08:35,320 get hit by a supernova, though? 255 00:08:35,320 --> 00:08:36,200 Don't worry too much. 256 00:08:36,200 --> 00:08:38,120 Supernovae are pretty rare, especially where 257 00:08:38,120 --> 00:08:39,160 we are in the Milky Way. 258 00:08:39,160 --> 00:08:41,000 They only happen a few times every century 259 00:08:41,000 --> 00:08:43,240 in the whole galaxy, on average. 260 00:08:43,240 --> 00:08:45,280 So the chances of a planet getting hit directly 261 00:08:45,280 --> 00:08:46,440 are pretty small. 262 00:08:46,440 --> 00:08:48,200 OK, that makes me feel a little better. 263 00:08:48,200 --> 00:08:49,920 But I'm guessing there are some places in the galaxy 264 00:08:49,920 --> 00:08:51,760 where supernovae happen more often, right? 265 00:08:51,760 --> 00:08:53,200 Yeah, that's true. 266 00:08:53,200 --> 00:08:55,640 They're more common in places where stars are actively 267 00:08:55,640 --> 00:08:58,440 forming, like in the spiral arms of galaxies. 268 00:08:58,440 --> 00:09:00,560 So if you're a planet in one of those areas, 269 00:09:00,560 --> 00:09:03,760 your chances of encountering a supernova might be a bit higher. 270 00:09:03,760 --> 00:09:05,400 Hmm. 271 00:09:05,400 --> 00:09:05,960 Interesting. 272 00:09:05,960 --> 00:09:09,320 OK, so even in those areas, a direct hit 273 00:09:09,320 --> 00:09:10,840 is still pretty rare, right? 274 00:09:10,840 --> 00:09:11,680 Right. 275 00:09:11,680 --> 00:09:13,440 It's more likely that a planet would just 276 00:09:13,440 --> 00:09:17,240 experience the side effects, like getting more heavy elements 277 00:09:17,240 --> 00:09:18,920 in its protoplanetary disk. 278 00:09:18,920 --> 00:09:23,040 It's a delicate balance, too close, and it's a disaster. 279 00:09:23,040 --> 00:09:25,040 But at the right distance, it can be the thing 280 00:09:25,040 --> 00:09:26,360 that makes life possible. 281 00:09:26,360 --> 00:09:27,880 So it's like walking a tightrope, huh? 282 00:09:27,880 --> 00:09:30,240 Destruction and creation always together. 283 00:09:30,240 --> 00:09:31,040 Exactly. 284 00:09:31,040 --> 00:09:32,960 And that brings up another interesting thing 285 00:09:32,960 --> 00:09:34,280 about supernovae. 286 00:09:34,280 --> 00:09:37,520 What happens to what's left after the explosion, 287 00:09:37,520 --> 00:09:38,640 the remnants? 288 00:09:38,640 --> 00:09:39,600 Oh, that's a good question. 289 00:09:39,600 --> 00:09:40,600 What has happened to them? 290 00:09:40,600 --> 00:09:43,200 Well, a supernova can leave behind some pretty incredible 291 00:09:43,200 --> 00:09:45,160 stuff, depending on how massive the star was. 292 00:09:45,160 --> 00:09:48,480 We're talking about neutron stars and even black holes. 293 00:09:48,480 --> 00:09:49,120 Wow. 294 00:09:49,120 --> 00:09:51,000 OK, those are not your everyday leftovers. 295 00:09:51,000 --> 00:09:52,200 You're telling me? 296 00:09:52,200 --> 00:09:52,880 Imagine this. 297 00:09:52,880 --> 00:09:55,240 You take the entire mass of the sun 298 00:09:55,240 --> 00:09:59,000 and you squeeze it into a ball just a few miles across. 299 00:09:59,000 --> 00:10:00,640 That's a neutron star. 300 00:10:00,640 --> 00:10:02,120 That's crazy dense. 301 00:10:02,120 --> 00:10:04,760 Who would even happen if you got a little bit of neutron star 302 00:10:04,760 --> 00:10:05,320 material? 303 00:10:05,320 --> 00:10:08,160 Well, a teaspoonful would weigh billions of tons. 304 00:10:08,160 --> 00:10:09,620 I mean, that's how dense they are. 305 00:10:09,620 --> 00:10:13,080 And get this, they spin really fast, so fast 306 00:10:13,080 --> 00:10:15,640 that they shoot out these beams of radiation. 307 00:10:15,640 --> 00:10:18,640 They sweep across the sky like a lighthouse. 308 00:10:18,640 --> 00:10:20,080 That's what we call a pulsar. 309 00:10:20,080 --> 00:10:23,280 So they're tiny, super dense, and spinning like crazy, 310 00:10:23,280 --> 00:10:25,200 shooting out beams of energy. 311 00:10:25,200 --> 00:10:27,160 It's amazing how the universe works. 312 00:10:27,160 --> 00:10:28,680 But what about black holes? 313 00:10:28,680 --> 00:10:30,040 I felt like those are even weirder. 314 00:10:30,040 --> 00:10:30,520 Oh, yeah. 315 00:10:30,520 --> 00:10:33,280 Black holes definitely take the weirdness up a notch. 316 00:10:33,280 --> 00:10:35,440 They're basically these regions of spacetime 317 00:10:35,440 --> 00:10:38,560 where gravity is so strong that nothing, not even light, 318 00:10:38,560 --> 00:10:39,920 can escape. 319 00:10:39,920 --> 00:10:43,000 It's because when the core of a supermassive star collapses, 320 00:10:43,000 --> 00:10:46,520 it all gets squeezed into a single point, a singularity. 321 00:10:46,520 --> 00:10:48,400 A singularity, infinite density. 322 00:10:48,400 --> 00:10:50,360 I don't even know if I could wrap my head around that. 323 00:10:50,360 --> 00:10:53,520 And if no light can escape, how do we even know they're there? 324 00:10:53,520 --> 00:10:54,600 Good question. 325 00:10:54,600 --> 00:10:56,320 We can't actually see them directly, 326 00:10:56,320 --> 00:10:59,640 but we can see how their gravity affects things around them. 327 00:10:59,640 --> 00:11:02,280 Like, if a star is orbiting a black hole, 328 00:11:02,280 --> 00:11:04,880 it'll behave in a certain way so we know something's there. 329 00:11:04,880 --> 00:11:07,720 So they're like these invisible anchors warping space and time 330 00:11:07,720 --> 00:11:08,840 around them. 331 00:11:08,840 --> 00:11:09,840 Crazy. 332 00:11:09,840 --> 00:11:13,320 It is amazing to think that both neutron stars and black holes, 333 00:11:13,320 --> 00:11:16,680 these crazy, incredible objects, come from these giant stars 334 00:11:16,680 --> 00:11:17,680 dying. 335 00:11:17,680 --> 00:11:20,160 It's like the universe is constantly recycling itself, 336 00:11:20,160 --> 00:11:21,040 you know? 337 00:11:21,040 --> 00:11:23,240 Turning energy and matter into something new 338 00:11:23,240 --> 00:11:24,360 over and over again. 339 00:11:24,360 --> 00:11:24,720 That's it. 340 00:11:24,720 --> 00:11:25,360 That's the key. 341 00:11:25,360 --> 00:11:28,320 Nothing is ever really lost, just transformed. 342 00:11:28,320 --> 00:11:31,040 That's what makes studying the cosmos so amazing. 343 00:11:31,040 --> 00:11:34,840 It's all about this interplay of destruction and creation. 344 00:11:34,840 --> 00:11:36,960 Even these huge, catastrophic events 345 00:11:36,960 --> 00:11:38,200 can lead to something new. 346 00:11:38,200 --> 00:11:39,800 You know, it really puts things into perspective. 347 00:11:39,800 --> 00:11:41,080 We started talking about planets, 348 00:11:41,080 --> 00:11:42,280 and now we're talking about black holes. 349 00:11:42,280 --> 00:11:44,200 It's just, I don't know, it really makes you think. 350 00:11:44,200 --> 00:11:46,280 It all comes back to that big question, right? 351 00:11:46,280 --> 00:11:47,440 Where did it all come from? 352 00:11:47,440 --> 00:11:51,160 The Earth, the stuff that makes us, the planets we see. 353 00:11:51,160 --> 00:11:52,760 It all started in those supernovae, 354 00:11:52,760 --> 00:11:55,160 those incredible cosmic furnaces. 355 00:11:55,160 --> 00:11:57,400 It's one thing to know it, but it's another 356 00:11:57,400 --> 00:11:59,320 to really understand it. 357 00:11:59,320 --> 00:12:03,080 To realize that every little bit of me, every atom, 358 00:12:03,080 --> 00:12:07,000 was once part of a star forged in a supernova. 359 00:12:07,000 --> 00:12:08,320 Even the gold in this ring. 360 00:12:08,320 --> 00:12:09,440 Exactly. 361 00:12:09,440 --> 00:12:11,520 We are literally stardust. 362 00:12:11,520 --> 00:12:13,320 It's pretty humbling when you think about it, 363 00:12:13,320 --> 00:12:14,760 but it's also kind of amazing. 364 00:12:14,760 --> 00:12:17,160 It connects us to this huge story that's been going on 365 00:12:17,160 --> 00:12:18,560 for billions of years. 366 00:12:18,560 --> 00:12:19,320 Yeah. 367 00:12:19,320 --> 00:12:21,720 So I know we have listeners out there who are probably just 368 00:12:21,720 --> 00:12:24,040 as fascinated by this as I am. 369 00:12:24,040 --> 00:12:26,800 What are some ways they can learn more about supernovae? 370 00:12:26,800 --> 00:12:28,760 Oh, there are tons of resources out there. 371 00:12:28,760 --> 00:12:31,240 Books, articles, amazing pictures and videos 372 00:12:31,240 --> 00:12:32,880 from Hubble and James Webb. 373 00:12:32,880 --> 00:12:35,880 Organizations like NASA and the European Space Agency 374 00:12:35,880 --> 00:12:39,040 post updates all the time about new discoveries. 375 00:12:39,040 --> 00:12:40,680 And if you want to get really hands on, 376 00:12:40,680 --> 00:12:42,360 there are groups of amateur astronomers 377 00:12:42,360 --> 00:12:43,880 who hunt for supernovae. 378 00:12:43,880 --> 00:12:45,520 They share tips and work together. 379 00:12:45,520 --> 00:12:46,440 It's pretty cool. 380 00:12:46,440 --> 00:12:48,680 So even someone with a telescope in their backyard 381 00:12:48,680 --> 00:12:50,200 could help find a supernova. 382 00:12:50,200 --> 00:12:50,800 Absolutely. 383 00:12:50,800 --> 00:12:52,280 I mean, some supernovae have actually 384 00:12:52,280 --> 00:12:54,040 been discovered by amateur astronomers. 385 00:12:54,040 --> 00:12:56,040 It's citizen science, you know? 386 00:12:56,040 --> 00:12:58,200 Anyone who loves space can be a part of it. 387 00:12:58,200 --> 00:12:59,000 That's awesome. 388 00:12:59,000 --> 00:13:02,280 So to all our listeners out there, keep looking up. 389 00:13:02,280 --> 00:13:03,660 You never know what you might find. 390 00:13:03,660 --> 00:13:06,440 And remember, every supernova we observe, 391 00:13:06,440 --> 00:13:08,800 every new thing we learn, helps us 392 00:13:08,800 --> 00:13:12,200 understand our place in the universe a little bit better. 393 00:13:12,200 --> 00:13:14,200 Well said. 394 00:13:14,200 --> 00:13:16,360 I think that about wraps up our deep dive 395 00:13:16,360 --> 00:13:20,980 into supernovae and planetary formation. 396 00:13:20,980 --> 00:13:23,160 It's been an amazing journey filled with, well, 397 00:13:23,160 --> 00:13:24,600 just mind blowing stuff. 398 00:13:24,600 --> 00:13:25,440 What do you think? 399 00:13:25,440 --> 00:13:26,280 I've had a blast. 400 00:13:26,280 --> 00:13:28,440 It's been a pleasure exploring this with you. 401 00:13:28,440 --> 00:13:30,280 And for our listeners, if you want 402 00:13:30,280 --> 00:13:32,360 to keep learning about the universe with us, 403 00:13:32,360 --> 00:13:34,880 make sure to subscribe to Cosmos in a Pod 404 00:13:34,880 --> 00:13:37,280 and check out our YouTube channel for more deep dives 405 00:13:37,280 --> 00:13:39,120 into the world of space and astronomy. 406 00:13:39,120 --> 00:13:41,640 We're always excited to share our love of the cosmos 407 00:13:41,640 --> 00:13:42,480 with you. 408 00:13:42,480 --> 00:13:44,960 And who knows what mysteries we'll uncover together next. 409 00:13:44,960 --> 00:13:47,920 Until next time, keep looking up, keep asking questions, 410 00:13:47,920 --> 00:13:56,600 and never stop exploring.