Massive stars. A chemical signature of first-generation very massive stars.

Abstract

Numerical simulations of structure formation in the early universe predict the formation of some fraction of stars with several hundred solar masses. No clear evidence of supernovae from such very massive stars has, however, yet been found in the chemical compositions of Milky Way stars. We report on an analysis of a very metal-poor star SDSS J001820.5-093939.2, which possesses elemental-abundance ratios that differ significantly from any previously known star. This star exhibits low [α-element Fe] ratios and large contrasts between the abundances of odd and even element pairs, such as scandium/titanium and cobalt/nickel. Such features have been predicted by nucleosynthesis models for supernovae of stars more than 140 times as massive as the Sun, suggesting that the mass distribution of first-generation stars might extend to 100 solar masses or larger.