Ancient Immigrant Star Offers Glimpse of the Universe's First Generations

Astronomers report that SDSS J0715-7334 is an extraordinarily metal-poor star—almost pure hydrogen and helium—likely formed from a primordial cloud polluted by a Population III supernova. Found ~80,000 light-years away near the Large Magellanic Cloud, its metal content is about 0.005% that of the Sun, making it the closest analogue to the first stars. Follow-up observations with the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and Magellan telescope suggest its Population III progenitor had at least 30 solar masses and an unusually energetic explosion, earning it the nickname “Ancient Immigrant.” The discovery, published in Nature Astronomy, helps illuminate the early chemical evolution of the cosmos.