Finding tiny space rocks, even smaller than grains of sand, on cathedral roofs is like finding a needle in a haystack. It’s a very difficult task.
Some scientists in the United Kingdom are trying to do this challenging job, as reported by The Guardian. They want to study cosmic dust, which are tiny particles from space called micrometeorites. By doing this, they hope to learn more about the makeup of meteors, asteroids, and comets. This could help them uncover secrets about how Earth and the Solar System formed in the past.
Each year, about 5,200 tons of cosmic dust from outer space survive as micrometeorites when they enter Earth’s atmosphere, the news outlet says. While it’s easier to find them in untouched places like Antarctica, going on an expedition there is costly. So, scientists are looking to old churches like Canterbury Cathedral. These churches have big roofs and aren’t disturbed much by people, making them good spots to search for micrometeorites.
To keep this cosmic dust clean, which comes in sizes from 50 microns to two millimeters, scientists wear special clothes and use vacuums while cleaning these roofs.
Afterward, they return to the lab and examine these piles of debris— which may include bird droppings— under a microscope to locate and gather micrometeorites for more examination.
The idea of finding cosmic secrets in interstellar dust at an ancient cathedral might sound like something out of a storybook, similar to Philip Pullman’s “His Dark Materials” trilogy.
But it’s real science. Many scientists believe that material from meteors—whether it’s cosmic dust landing on Earth or larger rocks—carried rare minerals and chemical compounds that helped start biological life on our planet long ago.
“There was more dust coming to Earth, maybe 1,000 times more dust, than today,” said Martin Suttle, a lecturer in planetary science at the United Kingdom’s Open University. “That dust carries lots of stuff which is attractive as a feedstock for early prebiotic chemistry, things like iron metal, which is otherwise not present on the Earth’s surface.”
Suttle co-authored a paper recently published in Nature Astronomy that explored how dust from outer space might have played a role in kickstarting life on Earth.
It’s amazing to think that something so small, like a tiny rock, could have had such a big impact.
