Featuring Moby in an astronaut suit making his was through Hollywood, his 2002 video for We Are All Made of Stars gave hope to every one of us.

However, while the track was soon forgotten by the Millennial generation, the lyrics were adopted for those pseudo-hippe inspirational quotes seen somewhere on your besties’ Instagram right about now.

Moby’s own inspiration was a little deeper, stemming from the quantum physics phenomena that claims, “on a basic quantum level, all the matter in the universe is essentially made up of stardust”.

Although quantum physics doesn’t fly with everyone, especially those unable to comprehend nanoscopic scales, astronomers have now come to a “dramatic conclusion” about the theory.

Ready?

Check it:

Nearly half of the atoms that make up our bodies may have formed beyond the Milky Way and travelled to the solar system on intergalactic winds driven by giant exploding stars.

So romanties.

For a comprehensive lowdown, let’s hop on The Guardian‘s trail:

The dramatic conclusion emerges from computer simulations that reveal how galaxies grow over aeons by absorbing huge amounts of material that is blasted out of neighbouring galaxies when stars explode at the end of their lives.

Powerful supernova explosions can fling trillions of tonnes of atoms into space with such ferocity that they escape their home galaxy’s gravitational pull and fall towards larger neighbours in enormous clouds that travel at hundreds of kilometres per second.

Although astronomers have long known that “elements forged in stars can travel from one galaxy to another”, this latest research is the first to reveal that up to half the material in the Milky Way, our very own galaxy, can arrive from galactic neighbours.

That basically means you could be made up of material from another, former living being.

A little creepy – but I digress, so let’s continue:

Much of the hydrogen and helium that falls into galaxies forms new stars, while heavier elements, themselves created in stars and dispersed in the violent detonations, become the raw material for building comets and asteroids, planets and life.

Woohoo, how cool? Read the full spiel here, or just listen to Moby’s track LOUD and do a little wiggle:

At least you now know that those cute little inspiration quotes hold some merit. Phew.

[source:theguardian]