Search This Blog

Wednesday 14 September 2016

The Universe in 101 words: There are rocks and metals older than the world...


Most people know that shooting stars are meteorites – rocks arriving from space, hitting Earth’s atmosphere. When those rocks reach the ground some are picked up, clues found inside them, and their stories revealed. 

Those stories are… astounding: Many of these rocks are parts of worlds destroyed billions of years ago - worlds with internal heat, water flowing underground, and the carbon chemistry that could lead to life. Some are from surviving worlds, like Mars or the Moon, and tell stories of ancient atmospheres, or long dried waters

Exploring those worlds is as hard as picking up fallen rocks… 

...OK, you probably need a laboratoy too.

Above: Imperial College scientists explain how we use meteorites to learn about other worlds..

Want to get direct links to our sources, and to stories we didn't have time to write about? Then you might like to subscribe to the Ancient Solar System News Round Up...

* indicates required


No comments:

Post a Comment