[ad_1]
Celestial water balloons
For the first time, scientists measured the water content of samples from a remote asteroid.
It is thanks to a successful mission of the Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa, which collected 1,500 particles of an asteroid called Itokawa and brought them back to Earth. Although Itokawa appears dusty and sterile, the samples contained a rich water mineral called pyroxene, according to CNN – and the scientists behind the research indicate that this finding supports the hypothesis that asteroid collisions provided at least a portion of the Earth's water.
Building of the world
Astronomers at Arizona State University behind the new research argue that water-enriched asteroids such as Itokawa could be responsible for much – up to 50% – of the Earth's water in the world. new study published in the newspaper Progress of science Wednesday.
"This makes these asteroids high priority targets for exploration," said researcher Maitrayee Bose CNNScientists should continue to collect samples of space rocks to better understand where they come from and how they are formed.
"The return sample missions are mandatory if we really want to do a thorough study of planetary objects," Bose said. CNN. "The Hayabusa Mission in Itokawa has expanded our knowledge of the unstable contents of the bodies that have contributed to the formation of the Earth. It would not be surprising that a similar mechanism of water production is common to the rocky exoplanets surrounding other stars. "
READ MORE: Water found in samples of the surface of an asteroid[[[[CNN]
More about asteroids: China prepares mission in deep space
[ad_2]
Source link