Nuclear explosions, meteorite impacts, and other high-energy events can act as natural laboratories for the formation of previously unknown materials. Advertisement AdvertisementAdvertisement AdvertisementThese Hiroshimaite particles were embedded in resin, polished, and analysed under reflected-light microscopes. Many of these particles still remain in the sands of Hiroshima Bay after eight decades since the atomic explosion. Now, scientists have found a new class of "Hiroshimaite materials" that form at a much higher human-made high-temperature range. This strange mix of elements in the spheres represents a snapshot of local metals that were present at the Hiroshima bay area the instant the explosion happened, researchers say.