Scientists have found cosmic dust for the first time in urban places, on rooftops in three of the world’s major cities, which can help unveil how the early solar system has evolved.
Cosmic dust is made up of left over particles that have been around since the formation of our solar system. These particles are tiny, roughly around 0.01 millimetres in size, and have been falling to Earth since it was formed billions of years ago. Analysing their chemical and mineral content can tell scientists about how the early solar system has evolved.
Most dust is collected by scientists from the frozen wastes of places like Antarctica, as it was thought too difficult to unearth these little time capsules in urban debris. For a new study, Matthew Genge from Imperial College london teamed up with Jon larsen, an amateur scientist from Norway, to sift through 300 kilogrammes of sediment that was trapped in gutters on roofs in Paris, Oslo and Berlin.