Scientists discover Earth’s oldest solid material – stardust older than the sun – USA TODAY, USA Today

Scientists have discovered the oldest solid material ever found on Earth from a meteorite that fell in Australia about 50 years ago.

The material that the researchers examined are ca lled presolar grains – or stardust – particles from a star that can eventually form new stars, along with new planets, moons and meteorites.

) This particular sample is about 5 billion to 7 billion years old and predates the sun, whichthe Field Museumsays is about 4.6 billion years old.

“This is one of the most exciting studies I’ve worked on, ”said Philipp Heck, lead-author of the study published in the peer-reviewedProceedings of the National Academy of Sciencesand associate professor at the University of Chicago.

The stardust was preserved in a meteorite that fell in Murchison, Victoria, in (*****************************************************************. Researchers at the University of Chicago have been studying the material for about (years.)

Presolar grains are extremely rare and were found in only about 5% of meteorites that have fallen to Earth, according to the Field Museum. They are formed when a star dies and can tell scientists more about the history of stars.

“It’s the next best thing to being able to take a sample directly from a star, ”said Jennika Greer, a graduate student at the Field Museum and the University of Chicago, and co-author of the study.

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