NASA likely to find meteorite pieces in the ocean

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Reddit
  • Flipboard
  • Email
  • WhatsApp
Scientists have identified two small pieces that could possibly be part of the space rock.
Scientists have identified two small pieces that could possibly be part of the space rock.

New Delhi : In the recent development, NASA scientists say that they may have found the first pieces of meteorite fragments in the Pacific Ocean. While searching the Nautilus vessel for pieces of a meteorite that fell in March 2018, they have identified two small pieces that could possibly be part of the space rock. 

In March 2018, the biggest meteorite falls was recorded in lately. The meteorite pieces had seemed especially sturdy, not prone to cracking or breaking as it passed through the atmosphere. Since then, scientists are hunting for a fragment of meteorite on the earth, if any. Luckily, they have found two small pieces that could be part of the space rock. Preliminary analysis suggest that the small fragments are pieces of fusion crust “meteorite exterior that melted and flowed like glaze on pottery as it entered the atmosphere,” wrote NASA.

Now, to get more clues on meteorites, scientists had to explore the bottom of the seafloor. According to Mashable, Fries and his team had identified the meteorite fall area to one square kilometer of ocean that went about 100 meters deep, then went exploring on the Nautilus, an Ocean Exploration Trust vessel. The Nautilus was equipped with remote operated vehicles (ROVs) fixed with cameras and “magnetic wands” to detect the iron often found in meteorites.

In the meantime, backscatter instruments set atop the ship scanned seafloor for any hard objects. Though the best way for scientists to detect meteorites was something far simpler, scientists studied the seafloor through the ROV’s cameras, looking for rocks that seemed out of place. "The best tools are eyes," Fries told Mashable. Scientists will confirm the Nautilus preliminary findings in further tests.

It is believed that the pieces of meteorites chunks will help scientists to know about the history of the Earth and to analyze chemical changes of the early Solar system. "Having any new piece of that puzzle is always welcome to the scientific community," Fries told Newsweek.