Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 11, 2026

Stable Isotopic Profiling of Intermediary Metabolic Flux in Developing and Adult Stage Caenorhabditis elegans
Published on: February 27, 2011
Chemical evolution of Mg isotopes versus the time variation of the fine structure constant
T Ashenfelter1, Grant J Mathews, Keith A Olive
1Department of Physics, Center for Astrophysics, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA.
Abstract:
We show that the synthesis of (25,26)Mg at the base of the convective envelope in low-metallicity asymptotic giant branch stars can produce the isotopic ratios needed to explain the low-z subset (with z<1.8) of the many-multiplet data from quasar absorption systems without invoking a time variation of the fine structure constant. This is supported by observations of high abundances of the neutron-rich Mg isotopes in metal-poor globular-cluster stars. We conclude that the quasar absorption spectra may be providing interesting information on the nucleosynthetic history of such systems.
Related Concept Videos
Atomic Mass
Nuclear Stability
To hold positively charged protons together in the...
High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry (HRMS)
Atomic Nuclei: Larmor Precession Frequency
Mass Spectrometry: Isotope Effect
Mass Spectrum: Interpretation

