Meteorite that struck NJ home could hold clues to life on Earth
The homeowners’ preservation of the meteorite allowed scientists to better study its makeup.
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A meteorite that crashed through a Hillsborough home in 2024 may contain materials that could help scientists understand the earliest origins of Earth.
Named “Hillsborough” for the location where it crash-landed on July 16, 2024, the meteorite was found to contain carbon-bearing compounds, amino acids and other compounds that “help scientists understand what building blocks of life may have been delivered to the early Earth,” according to the SETI Institute, a nonprofit corporation that conducts research related to the study of life in the universe.
When the meteorite was studied, researchers found small bits of the original asteroid “where it experienced concentrated salty fluids,” which had not previously been discovered in this particular type of asteroid.
“The findings provide new insight into the role of water, brines and asteroid chemistry in shaping the organic inventory of the early solar system,” the SETI Institute said in a press release. “The high concentration of salt in briny fluids can potentially create molecules crucial to life on Earth. Brines allow phosphate to remain in solution and can catalyze chemical reactions between organics and precipitate minerals.”
According to the SETI Institute, the meteorite was the size of a “heavy airline bag.” Scientists estimate that it entered Earth’s atmosphere at a speed of 32,000 miles per hour before breaking into pieces, with one of those chunks crashing through the roof of the Somerset County home. The homeowners then immediately preserved the object, which allowed scientists to better study its composition.
