Back To Astronomy IndexBack To Astronomy IndexStars are made from various elements most notably Hydrogen. The large mass of stars create huge pressures and temperatures that can fuse Hydrogen atoms and turn them into Helium atoms. This process creates an abundant amount of energy in the form of radiation that not only heats the Star to fantastic temperatures but also escapes the stars core and travels outward in all directions. In our case it is the reason why Earth does not have a temperature of about -200 C. If the fusion process did not create an excess of radiation the Universe would be black and lifeless.
In addition to being fundamental in the evolution of the universe, stars are also crucial to the evolution of life. All the complex atoms that are in animals and plants have at some point in time been made inside stars. The most likely time that these atoms were created was when a star came to the end of its life and turned into a Supernova. The massive forces contained in this cataclismic event would most certainly have been great enough to fuse the simple atoms of hydrogen, and helium etc.. into more complex atoms such as iron, aluminium and all of the others elements that exist.
However this is not to suggest that the only elements that exist must be on this planet. Indeed much more complex and interesting atoms probably already exist in other areas of the Universe. (unless of course the Death Star Theory is completely wrong)