<p>It's very likely, that we don't have discovered every non man-made element. For some elements there exist only very short-lived isotopes.</p>

<p><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plutonium" rel="nofollow">Plutonium</a>...</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>is the heaviest primordial element by virtue of its most stable isotope, plutonium-244, whose half-life of about 80 million years is just long enough for the element to be found in trace quantities in nature</p>
</blockquote>

<p><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primordial_nuclide" rel="nofollow">More about naturally occurring nuclides</a>.</p>

<p><a href="http://nopr.niscair.res.in/bitstream/123456789/9595/1/IJPAP%2042%287%29%20479-484.pdf" rel="nofollow">This paper</a> mentions the detection of a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curium" rel="nofollow">curium</a> ion in cosmic rays.
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neutron_capture_nucleosynthesis" rel="nofollow">The process which forms curium</a> can also form elements beyond curium, hence it's likely that there exist short-lived isotopes of elements in nature, which have not yet been detected. <a href="http://www.ift.uam.es/paginaspersonales/bellido/gravitacion/exp/CR_en.html" rel="nofollow">Research in this field is going on</a>.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-03-02T21:25:30.680Z
2014-03-02T21:25:30.680Z
Gerald
<p>So, elements such as iron, gold, etc. are formed from different types of supernovas, whether it's type 1A or 2. My question is, is it possible that there are elements that are formed that we never received during the formation of Earth and that we are unaware of? Or have we discovered every non man-made element?</p>

<supernova>
Question about the formation of elements
Michael Blake
# Question about the formation of elements

(Asked by: username_0 on 2014-03-02)

So, elements such as iron, gold, etc. are formed from different types of supernovas, whether it's type 1A or 2. My question is, is it possible that there are elements that are formed that we never received during the formation of Earth and that we are unaware of? Or have we discovered every non man-made element?

**Tags:** supernova


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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2014-03-02. Score: 2 | Accepted answer

It's very likely, that we don't have discovered every non man-made element. For some elements there exist only very short-lived isotopes.

[Plutonium](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plutonium)...

> is the heaviest primordial element by virtue of its most stable isotope, plutonium-244, whose half-life of about 80 million years is just long enough for the element to be found in trace quantities in nature

[More about naturally occurring nuclides](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primordial_nuclide).

[This paper](http://nopr.niscair.res.in/bitstream/123456789/9595/1/IJPAP%2042%287%29%20479-484.pdf) mentions the detection of a [curium](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curium) ion in cosmic rays.
[The process which forms curium](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neutron_capture_nucleosynthesis) can also form elements beyond curium, hence it's likely that there exist short-lived isotopes of elements in nature, which have not yet been detected. [Research in this field is going on](http://www.ift.uam.es/paginaspersonales/bellido/gravitacion/exp/CR_en.html).


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