<P> Elements heavier than iron were produced in supernovae through the r - process and in AGB stars through the s - process, both of which involve the capture of neutrons by atomic nuclei . Elements such as lead formed largely through the radioactive decay of heavier elements . </P> <P> Most of the atoms that make up the Earth and its inhabitants were present in their current form in the nebula that collapsed out of a molecular cloud to form the Solar System . The rest are the result of radioactive decay, and their relative proportion can be used to determine the age of the Earth through radiometric dating . Most of the helium in the crust of the Earth (about 99% of the helium from gas wells, as shown by its lower abundance of helium - 3) is a product of alpha decay . </P> <P> There are a few trace atoms on Earth that were not present at the beginning (i.e., not "primordial"), nor are results of radioactive decay . Carbon - 14 is continuously generated by cosmic rays in the atmosphere . Some atoms on Earth have been artificially generated either deliberately or as by - products of nuclear reactors or explosions . Of the transuranic elements--those with atomic numbers greater than 92--only plutonium and neptunium occur naturally on Earth . Transuranic elements have radioactive lifetimes shorter than the current age of the Earth and thus identifiable quantities of these elements have long since decayed, with the exception of traces of plutonium - 244 possibly deposited by cosmic dust . Natural deposits of plutonium and neptunium are produced by neutron capture in uranium ore . </P> <P> The Earth contains approximately 7050133000000000000 ♠ 1.33 × 10 atoms . Although small numbers of independent atoms of noble gases exist, such as argon, neon, and helium, 99% of the atmosphere is bound in the form of molecules, including carbon dioxide and diatomic oxygen and nitrogen . At the surface of the Earth, an overwhelming majority of atoms combine to form various compounds, including water, salt, silicates and oxides . Atoms can also combine to create materials that do not consist of discrete molecules, including crystals and liquid or solid metals . This atomic matter forms networked arrangements that lack the particular type of small - scale interrupted order associated with molecular matter . </P>

Why is the discovery of atom important to us humans