Two days ago it was hurtling through space, now someone could be holding the history of the universe in their hands.
In fact, researchers from Western University and Toronto's Royal Ontario Museum are hoping people will do a little meteorite hunting.
Professor Peter Brown, with Western University's Department of Physics and Astronomy, says the beach-ball sized meteorite entered the atmosphere around 2:44 a.m. Wednesday.
"The object itself actually got really deep into the atmosphere. And we think meteorites are on the ground just to the west of the town of Bancroft, [Ont.]."
The meteorite was picked up by the Western University “All Sky” camera network. It created a brilliant six-second flash, a clear indication a meteorite had made its way to the earth's surface.
It came into the earth’s atmosphere just east of Toronto, near Oshawa, tracking northeast over Peterborough, and according to Brown, "It gives us some context to understand this particular rock from very early in the solar system's history."
How early? As long ago as 4.5 billion years ago, when the solar system was actually being formed.
The meteorite fragments will look something like the ones discovered in Grimsby, Ont. during a similar event in October 2009.
The hope is meteorites discovered near Bancroft can be turned over to the Royal Ontario Museum to be studied.
Kim Tait, the ROM’s Chair of Mineralogy, explains, "Each one of these rocks is a little bit different. Every time I think I know what I'm going to find, I find something completely different. So that's what's exciting."
Brown say the only time a meteorite poses a risk is when it's hurtling to the earth, there are no radiation concerns.
Meteors usually have a shiny, black exterior, are heavier than most rocks and they're almost always magnetic.
