Why Gold Is So Rare on Earth

Neutron Star Collisions: The Main Source of Gold

The primary way gold is formed is during neutron star collisions.

What is a neutron star?

A neutron star is the collapsed core of a massive star that exploded in a supernova. It is incredibly dense — a teaspoon of neutron star material would weigh billions of tons.

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What happens when two neutron stars collide?

When two neutron stars crash into each other:

Matter is violently ejected into space
A flood of neutrons is released
The r-process occurs instantly
Heavy elements, including gold, are formed in seconds

In 2017, scientists observed this event for the first time (known as GW170817). The data confirmed that such a collision created an enormous amount of heavy elements — including more gold than the mass of Earth.

This discovery helped confirm how gold is formed in the universe.

Do Supernovae Also Create Gold?

Some types of supernova explosions may also contribute to gold formation, but scientists now believe that neutron star mergers are the dominant source of gold and other heavy elements.

Supernovae help create neutron stars, which later collide and produce gold through the r-process.

How Gold Reached Earth

After gold is formed in space, it does not stay there.

The gold created in neutron star collisions is blasted into space as dust and debris.
This material spreads across the galaxy for millions of years.
Eventually, it becomes part of giant clouds of gas and dust.
Our solar system formed from one of these clouds about 4.6 billion years ago.
Gold was already mixed into the material that formed Earth.

Later, asteroid impacts delivered even more gold to Earth’s crust, which is why gold is often found in areas affected by ancient meteorite activity.

Gold is rare because:

Only rare cosmic events can create it
Only a small amount reached the region where Earth formed
Much of Earth’s gold sank toward the core when the planet was molten
What we mine today mostly came from asteroid material added later

This is why gold is difficult to find and valuable.

Gold Is Older Than the Sun

One of the most fascinating facts about how gold is formed is this:

Every piece of gold on Earth is older than the Sun.

The gold in jewelry, electronics, and coins was created billions of years before our solar system existed.

You are literally holding material that was born in a cosmic collision between neutron stars.

Summary: How Gold Is Formed

Here is the process in simple steps:

Massive stars explode and form neutron stars.
Two neutron stars collide.
The r-process creates heavy elements like gold.
Gold is scattered across space.
The solar system forms from this material.
Gold becomes part of Earth.
Asteroids add more gold to Earth’s surface.
Humans mine it billions of years later.

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