StarsToSoil.Earth
Sun, Nov 09
|Boulder
Join the Fiske Planetarium Director, John Keller, for an immersive flight through our galaxy and solar system, coupled with a discussion of how stars and supernovae created all the elements needed for life out of a Universe that initially only contained hydrogen and helium gas.
Time & Location
Nov 09, 2025, 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
Boulder, 2414 Regent Dr, Boulder, CO 80309, USA
About the Event
Soil on Earth began with elements forged in stars, providing raw ingredients, but true soil formation—involving organic matter and weather required the evolution of Earth's atmosphere, oceans, and life. Nearly all elements heavier than hydrogen and helium were created within stars through nuclear fusion.
These elements were then dispersed throughout the cosmos when the stars exploded in supernovae. As the sun formed, a disk of gas and this "stardust" swirled around it. Gravity caused tiny dust particles, composed of elements such as silicon, oxygen, iron, and carbon, to clump together into larger rocky bodies, eventually forming the Earth. With these building blocks for the Soil we find on Earth today, the presentation will transition to a discussion of soil topics. It is said that soil is the skin of Earth and that soil and plants together work as the lungs of the Earth.
Microbes, roots, fungi, and minerals are…