SETI meteor expert says New Jersey meteorite expands known prebiotic chemistry

What was said

"So we've we've looked at this rock and we've found that this particular rock was very finely crushed. It was just pummeled and smashed and there were these little bits of pieces that came from the subsurface of the asteroid. And that gave us the first sort of window into what chemistry you get in on that type of an object."

Dr Peter Jenniskens, a senior research scientist at the SETI Institute, says laboratory analysis of a 2-lb meteorite that crashed through a roof in Hillsborough, New Jersey, has provided a rare look at the chemistry inside a particular type of asteroid material. Jenniskens says the meteorite was recovered quickly and remained “pristine”, allowing researchers to identify crushed material and fragments he describes as originating from beneath the asteroid’s surface, broadening the range of compounds thought capable of being delivered to early Earth.