Cotswolds meteorite may hold key to life
A meteorite that woke a family in the Cotswolds when it landed with a thud in their driveway may be the key to life’s origins. The 300g (10oz) rock crashed to the ground after zooming through the air as a fireball. The rare meteorite, called a carbonaceous chondrite, has been known to contain organics and amino acids. Because of this, it could be a crucial tool in unlocking the secrets to how life began on Earth, and the early history of the solar system.
WHEN a sleeping family in the Cotswolds were woken by an almighty thud, they could not have known that the object causing it may be the key to finding out how life formed on Earth.
The 300g (10oz) rock on their driveway was the first meteorite to be found in the UK for 30 years. It landed after zooming through the air as a fireball.
They guessed it was special, and summoned scientists from the Natural History Museum, who are now studying the meteorite at the London facility.
The meteorite is a rare type called a carbonaceous chondrite, which has been known to contain organics and amino acids – ingredients for life.
Because of this, it could be a crucial tool in unlocking the secrets to how life began on Earth, and the early history of the solar system.
Researchers are delighted with its condition, which made it ideal to study. Because it was handled so carefully by those who found it, and they alerted scientists so quickly, it is comparable to samples returned from space missions, both in quality and quantity.
Dr Richard Greenwood, research fellow in planetary sciences at the Open University, was the first scientist to identify and advise on the meteorite.
He said: “I was in shock when I saw it and immediately knew it was a rare meteorite and a totally unique event.”
The UK Fireball Alliance was able to use citizen science videos of the fireball, as well as their own special cameras, to pinpoint the area the meteorite landed, and alert the community to look for fragments. More meteorite pieces have now been found in the Cotswolds and more are expected to be discovered.
The team has urged locals to keep an eye out for black stones or piles of tiny rocks. They are incredibly fragile so people are asked to take a photo and record its location, before collecting the sample using a gloved hand or aluminium foil and contacting the Natural History Museum.
This meteorite is a rare find; there are approximately 65,000 known meteorites on Earth. Of these, only 51 of them are carbonaceous chondrites. This is the first known carbonaceous chondrite found in the UK, and the first meteorite recovered in the UK in 30 years. More than 1,000 meteorites are believed to fall to Earth every year, but it is rare for any to be witnessed and recovered.
Prof Sara Russell, a cosmic mineralogy researcher at the museum, said that getting the rock analysed before it deteriorates is a race against time, adding: “It is important these measurements are made quickly as the meteorite will be easily terrestrially contaminated.”