#space dust
CITIZEN SCIENCE:
The Journal Science Just Published aPaper with 30780 Authors
Andrew J. Westphal, with 65 other listed authors and 30714 Stardust@home citizen scientists: “Evidence for interstellar origin of seven dust particles collected by the Stardust spacecraft”. Science 15 August 2014: Vol. 345 no. 6198 pp. 786-791
Seven grains of interstellar dust reveal their secrets[Science/AAAS]
Eight years after a NASA mission brought them back to Earth, seven grains of interstellar dust keep giving scientists fresh puzzles to ponder.
Here’s the Editor’s Summary in Science:
Can you spot a speck of space dust?
NASA’s Stardust spacecraft has been collecting cosmic dust: Aerogel tiles and aluminum foil sat for nearly 200 days in the interstellar dust stream before returning to Earth.
Citizen scientists identified most of the 71 tracks where particles were caught in the aerogel, and scanning electron microscopy revealed 25 craterlike features where particles punched through the foil.
By performing trajectory and composition analysis, Westphal et al. report that seven of the particles may have an interstellar origin. These dust particles have surprisingly diverse mineral content and structure as compared with models of interstellar dust based on previous astronomical observations.
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