Hisham Boumjout
A group of researchers from Japan, China and England conducted new studies on a meteorite found in the Algerian desert in 1990, enabling them to add new elements to our understanding of how the solar system originated and solve the mystery of the ice remains inside the meteorites that none of the researchers had previously solved. Code it.
More than 4 billion years
According to the study published on November 21 in the journal Science Advances, researchers have relied on new, high-precision nanotechnology, which enabled them to study fossils from the remnants of melted ice, and its effects remained for more than 4 billion years, which will enable scientists to add knowledge About how our planet and the solar system originated.
Scientists do not know when this meteorite fell to Earth, but they managed to determine its age of 4.6 billion years, that is, it is closer to the solar system that originated 5 billion years ago, and is considered one of the most important meteorites found on our planet to its foot, and also because He came from far away from the solar system.
Since its discovery in the Tamanrasset area of the Yellow Slavery area, this meteorite has been subjected to several studies, but this new study, led by Japanese researcher Megumi Matsumoto from Kyoto University, has been able to analyze the remains of this ice, which was previously a mystery to scientists, note that this The first time researchers were able to analyze these remains.
A rare meteorite
The researchers concluded to form a new model in the analysis of meteorites and read its history based on the remnants of this ice found in this rare meteorite.
The meteorite, named Acfer 094, was discovered with a large group of meteorites by German researchers between 1990 and 1991, says Charaf Chapo, dean of the Faculty of Earth Sciences and Engineering at Setif University in Algeria.
`` The number of meteorites at the time was about 200 meteorites, where the German researchers chose the yellow parchment area to search for these meteorites because the sand is yellow, and therefore easy to find these stones, which number about 200 meteorites, but they were all converted to Germany and this is a pity. ''
He added that this meteor is very rare, because it dates back to the time of the emergence of the solar system, the oldest in the world, so subjecting the analysis will enable researchers to understand the origin of the creation of the universe.
The remains of an asteroid
Researchers believe that this meteorite is the rest of an asteroid that was once ice and exploded when it entered a high-cold area, and parts of it fell in the desert of Algeria.
According to this new model, the beginning of the asteroids originated from dust, and then formed the silicate material, which in turn was surrounded by ice, and over time this material grew due to the accumulation of dust but without ice, forming a nucleus rich in ice and lack of crust.
As it approached the cold regions within the solar system, the material turned into a solid rock that also grew over time and the nucleus grew with it and the asteroid exploded.
"We previously knew that this meteorite had ice fossils, but we could not analyze it because we lacked the necessary technology. Today we were able to do this," said senior researcher Megumi Matsumoto. Is a key to understanding the origin of the universe. "
"This meteorite was found in the desert of Algeria and was cut for a few parts to be distributed to some universities and museums.