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[This is pretty much a copy and paste job from Technetium question but I wanted to add this one in case there was some other explanation] So, I understand that PM doesn't exist in nature [though, I don't know why every reference I see regarding PM says that and then goes on to state that it is found in some stars...] but, if that's the case, then why is it found in some stars? This element doesn't fuse in stars (I think, I found a graph saying that it does) so it has to be left over from supernovae. Lastly, how many stars have been discovered that contain promethium? Thanks much.

Curious Layman
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I found this paper discussing the production of promethium in stars. The paper suggests several possibilities:

  • Fission of heavy or superheavy nuclei

  • Spallation of heavy nuclei by high energy protons

  • Reactions of Nd and Sm with low energy nucleons: the s-process

The longest half life of any promethium isotope is 17.7 years, so it isn't going to be left over from supernovae. Promethium has to be produced continuously for it to be present in stars.

John Rennie
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