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 called presolar grains – or stardust – particles from a star that can eventually form new stars, along with planets, moons and meteorites.
This particular sample is about 5 billion to 7 billion years old and predates the sun, which the Field Museum in Chicago says 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-reviewed Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and associate professor at the University of Chicago.
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