For example, gold, platinum, and uranium are only produced via the r-process. By the early 1970s, scientists knew that the s-process happens in the envelopes of low-mass stars at the end of their ...

I want you to notice how flat the chart is near iron-56; many elements on either side have almost the exact same binding energy per nucleon. Now look all the way over on the left side to helium-4.

Iron: A biological element? Date: June 26, 2015 Source: University of Wisconsin-Madison Summary: Think of an object made of iron: An I-beam, a car frame, a nail. Now imagine that half of the iron ...

This process, called “neutron capture,” then changes the iron nucleus (26 protons) to a cobalt nucleus (27 protons). These events repeat to create heavier elements.

To help solve the mystery of the origin of these particles, scientists launched TIGER (Trans-Iron Galactic Element Recorder) at McMurdo Station at 6:30 a.m. EST Dec. 20.

Iron can easily lose or gain one electron going from the ferrous (Fe++) to the ferric (Fe+++) state, back and forth indefinitely. This is how it carries oxygen, for example.

Here’s how it works. El Laco in Chile is an iron-rich volcano complex and also a source of rare earth elements. (Image credit: Daniel P. Gauer via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0) ...