A pleasant surprise has shocked scientists as they recently opened a mysterious sample of asteroid material dropped from space.
In January 2020, the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency’s Hayabusa2 probe made history by collecting material from the Ryugu asteroid and sending it back to earth in December.
The sample was first contained in a capsule made of re-entry heat insulation material that was dropped from a height of around 33 kilometers. After dropping, the capsule entered the atmosphere and slowly descended for about 20 minutes before landing in the Australian outback.
Scientists have not yet determined what substance is inside the sample container, but they were thrilled to find a unique material as they opened the container.
The material is described as “black and glossy” and is found to have an unusual shape. It is estimated that the substance is a type of heat insulation material used during the re-entry of the container into Earth’s atmosphere.
The material is believed to be from the Ryugu asteroid, which contains a unique type of rock with a low-temperature history of formation. The sample dropped from space is thought to have been on the surface of the asteroid for several million years before being collected, which is why scientists are surprised to see the unusual shape and black color of the material.
It is believed that the insulated material is made up of a combination of silicate minerals such as forsterite and enstatite, along with some calcium-aluminium-rich inclusions.
As the sample is not yet completely analyzed, scientists are looking forward to further studies of the material to learn more about the asteroid’s history and the possible origin of the material.
The study of this unusual material from space will open up a new avenue of understanding of cosmic material and could be crucial to deepening our knowledge of the solar system, the universe, and ultimately ourselves.