What do we learn from presolar grains in meteorites?
Presolar grains contain the original atoms of the stars in which they were
formed. They are thus samples of stars we can study in the laboratory and are
providing interesting information about a wide range of astrophysical topics.
Stellar evolution and nucleosynthesis
On the basis of their isotopic compositions, most presolar grains are believed
to have originated in two types of stellar environments: red giant stars and
supernova explosions.
Galactic chemical evolution
Age of the Galaxy
Circumstellar dust grain formation
Conditions in the very early Solar System
© Larry R. Nittler Last modified May 20, 1999