Neutron star smash-up seen for first time, `transforms` understanding of universe
(PHYSorg.com Space & Earth)

For the first time, scientists have witnessed the violent fusion of two super-dense neutron stars through shockwaves and light flashes emitted 130 million years ago, researchers announced to much fanfare on Monday. The groundbreaking observation resolves several long-standing mysteries-revealing the origin of heavy metals on our planet and elsewhere in the Universe, and unmasking the source of mysterious radiation bursts detected by satellites, they said.