Scientists Discover First Time Comets Fall to Earth

Comet [illustration] (gizmodo.com.au)

The team of researchers from the University of Witwatersrand and University of Johannesburg, South Africa, claims to have found the first evidence of a comet that fell to Earth. That said, the findings could help researchers to solve the mystery of the formation of the Solar System. 

Launch the National Monitor, October 9, 2013, the comet was estimated to disintegrate into gravel after hitting the Earth's atmosphere at 28 million years ago, and fell around the Sahara desert. 


"Comet has always visit the Earth's sky. However, the comet will burn to the dust in Earth's atmosphere, so that the history has been discovered the remains of comet material on Earth," said Professor David Block, of the University of Witwatersrand. 

Block added, pebbles burning comet in Earth's atmosphere at 28 million years ago was then exposed to a temperature of 2,000 degrees Celsius heat in the Sahara desert, Africa. 

"As a result of warming temperatures that resulted in the gravel of the comet turned into silica glass scattered yellow 6000 kilo meters in the Sahara region," said Block. 

Currently, the research team focused on finding the black pebble comet previously identified by geologists Egypt as silica materials. 

"After our analysis of the chemical method possible, black pebbles that are part of the comet's nucleus. As you know, the comet has three parts, namely the nucleus, coma, and tail," said Block. 

Create a diamond 

The study also found that the comet that struck the Earth with a very loud and high pressure impact on the formation of microscopic diamonds. 

"Diamonds are produced by carbon pads and usually formed deep in the bowels of the Earth. Effects of the lacing of the comet that produced the famous diamond gravel name Hypatia," said Professor January Kramer of the University of Johannesburg. 

Citing data from the U.S. space agency (NASA), Kramer also said, comet composed of ice, dust and rock debris left over from the formation of the solar system about 4.5 billion years ago. 

"NASA has been spending billions of dollars to collect comet material in space and brought to Earth. Now, we have a new approach to find the comet material without having to spend billions of dollars," said Kramer. 

"Comet has a secret of the formation of the Solar System. Finding is the first comet's material has opened up opportunities for us to know the exact origin of the solar system," added Kramer. 

Detailed results of the study can be read in the journal Earth and Planetary Science Letters.