‘Isotope studies of carbon and nitrogen suggest that primitive carbonaceous chondrites,including CM-types,delivered organic matter to the early Earth,’ said cosmochemist Queenie Chan of Royal Holloway,University of London,and biogeochemist Nana Ogawa of the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology.

‘The Hillsborough meteorite contained 1.8% by weight of carbon and 0.07% of nitrogen,and had carbon and nitrogen isotopes typical for CM-type meteorites.’

The team found a broad range of soluble organic compounds,indicating that the meteorite had undergone more extensive water-related alteration than most other CM meteorites.

‘A high fraction of compounds were the product of organic chemistry with minerals,’ said organic mass spectrometry specialist Phil Schmitt-Kopplin of the Technical University of Munich.

‘We do not know if these magnesium organic compounds were contributed by brine chemistry or were simply left over from earlier impact shock processes.’

Researchers also detected numerous amino acids,alongside carboxylic acids and other organic molecules.

Astrobiologist Danny Glavin of Nasa’s Goddard Space Flight Center and colleagues concluded that meteorites of this type may have delivered important organic compounds to the early Earth,contributing to the inventory of molecules from which life eventually emerged. Their findings suggest the complex mixture of amino acids found in the Hillsborough meteorite most likely formed within its parent asteroid,with brine chemistry playing a significant role.

Some fragments of the Hillsborough meteorite will be preserved at the American Museum of Natural History in New York.

‘We are thrilled that nature delivered such a precious asteroid sample on our doorstep,’ said curator Denton Ebel.