Two planetary scientists investigate Canterbury Cathedral's roof for cosmic dust.
The red brick parapet hides the streets, buildings, and trees below, while only wispy clouds block the deep blue sky beyond.
Dr. Penny Wozniakiewicz, wearing a hazardous suit and a heavy vacuum backpack, meticulously traces a gutter with the suction machine's tube.
“We’re looking for tiny microscopic spheres,” says her colleague, Dr. Matthias van Ginneken from Kent University, also in protective gear.
Right now, we are collecting thousands of dust particles, and we hope a tiny number came from space.”
Some simulations estimate about 15,000 tons of interplanetary dust enter Earth's atmosphere each year, equivalent to 75 blue whales.
Antarctica estimates 5,200 tons of micrometeorites fall to Earth.
Comets and asteroids likely produced these 50-micron to 2-millimetre particles.