Last year, a rare meteorite survived atmospheric entrance and crashed in the UK. It did so in a field in the town of Gloucestershire. 12 months later, scientists have revealed the space rock contained extraterrestrial water and DNA building blocks. This meteorite, called Winchcombe, was the first of its type ever discovered in the UK. By collecting it quickly, the public and scientists ensured it remained in almost pristine condition for researchers to examine the materials it contained. Now, scientists have published the results of what they found in the journal Science Advances. Their paper supports the theory that space rocks, such as the Winchcombe meteorite, carried from deep space the necessary elements and molecules that eventually gave rise to life on Earth.

The space rock that smashed into a field in Gloucestershire (The United Kingdom) back in 2021 houses extraterrestrial water and DNA building blocks.

Necessary ingredients for life

The paper, led by Dr. Ashley King, who co-led the study and is a meteorite expert at the Natural History Museum (NHM), explained in a statement that the Winchcombe meteorite is incredibly well preserved. Thanks to this, it was possible to find that it housed all the necessary ingredients for life to spring into existence. What is even more interesting is the water it brought with it. Based on hydrogen isotopes, the composition of the water is very similar to what is found in Earth’s oceans, and amino acids, which make up DNA, are also present in the meteorite. More importantly, scientists knew for a fact that the meteorite was not contaminated on Earth, so what they found was not a false reading.

Moreover, the study supports theories that carbonaceous asteroids contributed to the arrival of these molecules on Earth after its formation. Even though the Winchcombe meteorite fell in Gloucestershire, its origins lie more than 300 million kilometers away from Earth.

Piece of a larger asteroid

Using the cameras that caught the meteorite’s fall to Earth, scientists were able to trace its path back to its origin. According to scientists, the space rock that eventually fell to Earth was part of a much larger asteroid. The parent body likely orbited the sun between Mars and Jupiter for millions of years. Analysis of the space rock also shows that it had been exposed to the solar wind from the sun. This is a telltale sign that it was present on the parent body for quite some time. Then, a collision with another celestial body changed things. Scientists believe that less than 300 thousand years ago, the asteroid belt caused the destruction of the asteroid.

Eventually, it catapulted small space rocks in all directions, a piece of which eventually crashed on Earth. When it fell, it traveled at around 13 kilometers per second. This is around 15 times faster than a rifle bullet. Nevertheless, it remains the slowest meteorite to be recorded.