A burst of powerful radiation observed in space has challenged traditional theories about the formation of some of the heavy metals such as gold and platinum.
Scientists have discovered that such a flare can produce massive amounts of heavy, rare atoms in seconds, making it a remarkable source of valuable metals.
According to a study published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, magnetars, which have existed since before the solar system was formed, could represent an early source of precious metals, such as gold.
"If you consider the fundamental components of everything, it's just neutrons, protons, and electrons," Anirudh Patel, the study's lead author, told The Washington Post.
Magnetars often emit strong gamma and enormous X-ray flares, which are so intense that they can interfere with satellites on Earth, even if they are thousands of light-years away.
A recent analysis of flares indicates that a single event may have produced up to two million billion kilograms of heavy elements.
Scientists believe these explosions are caused by "starquakes", breaking down the magnetar's surface after its magnetic field snaps and twists.
These flares may reportedly account for as much as 10 per cent of the gold, platinum, and other metals found in our galaxy.
Brian Metzger of the Flatiron Institute's Centre for Computational Astrophysics is one of the scientists responsible for this magnetar flare discovery.
Mr Metzger and his colleagues tried to show how these extraordinarily strong neutron star outbursts might create r-process elements, or valuable metals, at unthinkable dimensions.
This r-process can also produce additional materials, such as uranium, alongside gold and platinum.
Magnetar flares coincidentally produce the ideal environment for nuclei to grab these stray particles and ascend the elemental ladder.
Researchers claimed that this was the second instance of direct evidence of the formation sites of these components that they have found.
"It represents a significant advancement in our comprehension of the production of heavy elements," Mr Metzger said.
That confirmation and the new discovery shed light on how the universe stores metals much heavier than iron on its shelves.
Although rare in the cosmos, magnetars flare frequently and are believed to have existed earlier in our galaxy than neutron star fusion events.
There have only been three of these spectacular "magnetar giant flares" recorded in the last 60 years, but the biggest event occurred in 2004.
These neutron stars, created when huge stars died explosively, are a dozen miles wide and have more mass than the sun.
Their magnetic fields are billions of times stronger than the Earth and a thousand times stronger than normal neutron stars.
