Crushed up asteroids found in the atmosphere of a long-dead white dwarf star could help astronomers find and measure the universe's missing lithium. Lithium measurements in stars like our own Sun have never added up to the amount scientists predict should exist - suggesting there is much more than we can find. The Big Bang, the leading explanation for how the universe began 13.8 billion years ago, produced three elements: hydrogen, helium and lithium. Of the three elements, lithium presents the biggest mystery. But the new study by University of North Carolina astronomers provides clues for tracking its evolution. Finding traces of the element in the rocky remains of an asteroid in the atmosphere of a nine billion year old white dwarf could help scientists estimate the total amount of lithium in the universe as it suggests it may be dispersed to rocky bodies.