Do you know when water, which is vital to life, was formed in the universe? fromU.K.Experts and scholars from the University of Portsmouth reveal the secret"The first drop of water"Formation time and origin. According to professional academic journals under Springer Nature"Nature-Astronomy"A paper published in the early morning of March 4th, Beijing time stated that a modeling study showed thatWater may have first formed 100 to 200 million years after the Big Bang, about 13.8 billion years ago.
The author of the paper believes that this study found that water may have formed in the universe earlier than previously estimated, andCould be a key ingredient in the first generation of galaxies.
According to him, the components of water, hydrogen and oxygen, are known to be formed in different ways. Lighter chemical elements (such as hydrogen, helium and lithium) were formed during the Big Bang, but heavier elements (such as oxygen) are the products of nuclear reactions or supernova explosions inside stars.
Therefore, it was not yet clear when water formed in the universe.
In this study, the researchers simulated13 times, 200 timesComputer models of two supernovae in solar-mass stars to analyze the products of these supernova explosions.
They found that due to the extremely high temperatures and densities reached, the first and second simulations produced0.051 times and 55 timesSolar mass of oxygen.
Further study revealed that as this gaseous oxygen cooled and mixed with the hydrogen left around by the supernova,Water forms in the clumps of dense material left behind. These clumps may be where second-generation stars and planets formed.
Among them, in13 timesIn first simulation of solar mass, study finds that after supernova event30 million to 90 million years, the water mass reaches a level approximately equivalent to1solar mass100 millionarriveOne in 1,000,000.
in another200 timesIn the second simulation of the solar mass, the mass of water is3 million years laterreachedAbout 0.001 piecesSolar mass.
In this regard, the paper concludes that if water can survive the potentially devastating formation process of the first generation of galaxies, then water may bebillions of yearsparticipated in the formation of planets before.