Oldest meteorite ever found: 4.6 BILLION-year-old space rock discovered in the Sahara could shed light on the early solar system
- Experts analyzed a meteorite discovered in the Sahara last year
- The rock weighs 70 pounds and is brown in color with green spots all over
- It consists mainly of volcanic rock, but also silicon dioxide found on Earth
- Named EC 002, it is 4.6 billion years old and was once part of an early planet
Last year, an ancient meteorite or achondrite was discovered in the Sahara Desert that has now been identified as a chunk of a protoplanet that formed before Earth was formed.
The space rock, dubbed EC 002, dates back 4.6 billion years and is largely composed of volcanic rock, leading experts to believe it came from the crust of a very early planet.
The team of French and Japanese scientists determined that the rock was once liquid lava, but cooled and solidified for 100,000 years to form the 70-pound piece that eventually made its way to our planet.
Researchers also note that no asteroids with similar properties have been found, suggesting that the protoplanet it came from has since disappeared as it became part of larger bodies or was ‘simply destroyed’.
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Last year, an ancient achondrite was discovered in the Sahara Desert that has now been identified as a chunk of a protoplanet that formed before Earth was formed. The stony meteorite, called EC 002, dates back 4.6 billion years
Anchondrites come from early planetary bodies that were reshaped from molten fragments and flung into space as a result of a new collision.
At first glance, these rocks also resemble those on Earth, and consider them a rare discovery in the scientific community.
The latest anchondrite is named after its landing site in the Algerian dune sea of Erg Chech, which is made up of several meteorites weighing about 70 pounds together, Motherboard reports.
Only a few thousand of these have been analyzed, most of which is basalt, but EC 002 is mainly made of volcanic rock, making it rich in sodium, iron and magnesium.
The rock is mostly volcanic rock, thought by leading experts to come from the crust of a very early planet. The team describes EC 002 as ‘relatively coarse-grained, tan and beige’, noting that it was also spotted with yellow and green bits
The latest anchondrite is named after the landing site in the Algerian dune sea of Erg Chech, which consists of several meteorites weighing about 70 pounds.
With this in mind, the team says EC 002 is “also the oldest magnetic rock ever recorded.”
Researchers determined its age by studying the rock’s magnesium and aluminum isotopes, which revealed that it was formed about 4.566 billion years ago – while Earth is said to be 4.543 billion years old.
The team describes EC 002 as “relatively coarse-grained, tan and beige,” noting that it was also spotted with yellow and green bits.
They also note that when they looked at other celestial objects and focused on their wavelengths, they found nothing that matched the wavelength reflected by EC 002.
The meteorite is also 58 percent silica, making it even rarer than others previously found on Earth, as this mineral is commonly found in volcanic regions of our planet.
Protoplanets covered in andesitic crusts were likely common, the team wrote in the study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
“However, no asteroid shares the spectral features of EC 002, indicating that almost all of these bodies have disappeared, either because they became the building blocks of larger bodies or planets, or were simply destroyed.”