An investigation into mineral samples collected on the carbon-rich Ryugu asteroid has revealed ancient records from the formation of our solar system over 4.5 billion years ago. EPSS Professor Kevin McKeegan was co-author in the study that found that Ryugu’s carbonate minerals crystallized through reactions with water in the first 1.8 million years after the solar system’s birth, and as such have preserved the temperature and composition conditions of the time.

To learn more about McKeegan and his team’s analysis of these minerals, including insights into the Ryugu asteroid’s formation and what it reveals about the infancy of our solar system’s planets, see: https://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/minerals-reacted-with-water-on-ryugu-asteroid

Photo Credit: Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)