One small piece of rock, but a giant discovery for scientists. This is one of the first pieces of meteorite to be discovered in the UK for three decades.

"This is a once in a lifetime experience really for us," says Ashley King from the Natural History Museum.

"So, it's incredibly rare for meteorites to actually be witnessed coming down, landing on the earth, and being recovered."

The rocks that have been found are so rare, they're a type of meteorite never before seen in the UK.

"This is what we call a carbonaceous chondrite meteorite, and so that means it comes from the birth of our solar system," explains King.

"So, this rock is 4.6 billion years old, and it contains all the ingredients that were there when our solar system was forming, that went into making asteroids, went into making comets, and ultimately. Went into making planets like the Earth."

When a fireball meteor was seen shooting through the night sky, scientists dared to dream that small pieces of it may have landed.

They asked people to search in an area just north of the English town of Cheltenham and began getting calls from the town of Winchcombe.

Sure enough, the rocks people were finding here were meteorites.

Scientists began searching the local area, that search led them here, to Lachland Bond's parents' farm.

"So, we actually found out via the scientists coming to our door, knocking and saying that there had been a potential meteorite falling on our land and if they could have a little look," explains Bond.

Within an hour, they found something.

"If it gives us a little bit of a glimpse into history, then that will be a wonderful thing to be able to say that it happened on our land," says Bond.

The last time a meteorite was discovered in the UK was back in 1991.

People in Winchcombe sense history has been made here.

"From our point of view, it's exciting, people have actually had a purpose to go out and walk at the moment, not they didn't have a purpose already, but they certainly now have a purpose to go out and walk," says one resident.

"This is exciting news. Yeah, it is, yes. Puts Winchcombe on the map for yet another reason," says another.

Share:
More In Science
Between Bells: January 9, 2018
This Changes Things: Advice for the executives and leaders of tomorrow, sponsored by American Express OPEN. On Between Bells: the latest from the Consumer Electronics Show, net neutrality's last stand, and more. With Petco, Curiosity, Daily Kos, Popular Science, and more.
How Do Bugs Survive the Winter?
Not all of us can cozy up by the fire to brave the winter weather. Curiosity.com's Ashley Hamer joins Cheddar to answer how insects survive the cold, and more of your burning winter questions.
WWE Puts Fans in the Ring With VR
Chief Strategy and Financial Officer George Barrios told Cheddar at CES that this initiative by the WWE is an extension of the company's social and digital strategy.
SMU Cox School of Business: The Business of Business School
Matthew Myers has been the Dean of the Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University since August 2017. Myers has been working with the leadership team at SMU to continue attracting students to SMU and building out their STEM program collaborations.
East Coast Gets Arctic Blast
The east coast is recovering this Monday after a brutally cold weekend following the bomb cyclone. Sara Miller, Editor at Live Science, joins Cheddar to discuss what we can expect for the rest of the winter and what signs we should look out for when it comes to global warming.
From "Bomb Cyclone" to Freezing Cold Temperatures
The snow from the "bomb cyclone" may be done falling, but those snowflakes are being replaced by falling and freezing temperatures. Meteorologists Mace Michael and Dan Leonard join Cheddar to go over what to expect this weekend and how businesses are fairing in these temps.
A Wet, Cold, and Stormy Start to 2018
Reed Timmer, AccuWeather Extreme Meteorologist, joins us live from Salem, Massachusetts where he discusses the record flooding and the historic cold and precipitation from bomb cyclone "Grayson."
"Bomb Cyclone" Hits the East Coast
The East Coast is getting hit by a major snowstorm. The weather event is being called a "bomb cyclone." Andrew Freedman is a Science Editor at Mashable and he joins Cheddar to explain why the storm is so strong and what will continue to happen.
Between Bells: January 4, 2018
VF Hive + Between Bells: The crew from Vanity Fair’s Hive discusses the new day at 'Today.' Between Bells looks at the Trump's new war on Bannon, and why Meryl is calling out Ivanka and Melania. With Women's Health, Mental Floss, YourTango and more.
Load More