Stars obtain the energy for their light and heat by fusing light elements into heavier ones. The heaviest elements - the ones which are heavier than iron - are formed in supernovas and in the red giant stars. Violent forces blow recently formed elements out of the stars and far out into interstellar space, where they form new stars and planets. The atoms in matter from which we are formed may have been part of many stars before becoming human life. The remains of a supernova can weigh over 1 million tons per teaspoonful. The biggest stars end up as black holes, where gravity becomes so great that not even light can escape. This leads to other phenomena. Time would come to a standstill, and perhaps one could slip through them and out into other universes, or even out into our own universe to other places and periods. Does all this confusion have a purpose, and is the purpose us?
(From the book: "Science or God?" ("Videnskaben eller Gud?") edited by Bent Raymond Joergensen and Uffe Graae Joergensen)