NOIR Lab - An Extremely Rare Ancient Star episode artwork

EPISODE · Apr 11, 2026 · 14 MIN

NOIR Lab - An Extremely Rare Ancient Star

from The 365 Days of Astronomy

Astronomers have discovered one of the most chemically primitive stars ever identified — an ancient stellar relic that preserves the chemical imprint of the very first stars in the Universe. In this podcast, Dr. Ani Chiti discusses the discovery of this ancient star and what it tells us about star formation in the early Universe.    Bios:  - Rob Sparks is in the Communications, Education and Engagement group at NSF's NOIRLab in Tucson, Arizona. - Dr. Anirudh Chiti is a Brinson Prize Fellow at Stanford University, interested in the formation of the first stars and galaxies, the early production of heavy elements, the early Milky Way, and local tracers of dark matter. He observes and characterizes nearby stars and galaxies that formed at early times to understand these topics, in an approach known as "Near-field Cosmology" or "Galactic Archaeology".   We've added a new way to donate to 365 Days of Astronomy to support editing, hosting, and production costs.  Just visit: https://www.patreon.com/365DaysOfAstronomy and donate as much as you can! Share the podcast with your friends and send the Patreon link to them too!  Every bit helps! Thank you! ------------------------------------ Do go visit http://www.redbubble.com/people/CosmoQuestX/shop for cool Astronomy Cast and CosmoQuest t-shirts, coffee mugs and other awesomeness! http://cosmoquest.org/Donate This show is made possible through your donations.  Thank you! (Haven't donated? It's not too late! Just click!) ------------------------------------ The 365 Days of Astronomy Podcast is produced by the Planetary Science Institute. http://www.psi.edu Visit us on the web at 365DaysOfAstronomy.org or email us at [email protected].

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NOIR Lab - An Extremely Rare Ancient Star

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This episode was published on April 11, 2026.

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Astronomers have discovered one of the most chemically primitive stars ever identified — an ancient stellar relic that preserves the chemical imprint of the very first stars in the Universe. In this podcast, Dr. Ani Chiti discusses the discovery of...

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