When a mysterious meteorite fell in Algeria in 2023, scientists didn't know that it was a special rock. Earth is battered by several meteorites every year. Most of them are remnants of a celestial body that exists in space right now in a different form, such as the Moon, Mars and other worlds. However, this meteorite came from a planet that died millions, or probably billions of years ago.

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According to a new analysis of the meteorite, it contains materials that do not match the ones scientists know about. The Northwest Africa (NWA) 15915 meteorite weighs 2.84 kilogrammes and supposedly belongs to a Mercury-like planet that has been dead for a long time. A team made the discovery of scientists led by Jennifer Mitchell of the University of Minnesota, New Scientist reported.

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The planets and other bodies that exist in the solar system today were born from a proto-planetary disk that surrounded our Sun 4.6 billion years ago. At the time, the solar system was littered with nearly 50 to 100 protoplanets, mostly about the size of the Moon or Mars. Most of them came together to form the eight solar systems we know about today. Earth suffered a violent collision with Theia, a Mars-like planet, and is said to be living inside the mantle even today. 

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Then there were dwarf planets like Ceres, Pallas, and Vesta that escaped unscathed.

An 'outlier' meteorite

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The meteorite in Algeria was studied by the team, which found that NWA 15915 did not come from a living body in space but fit the description of an "outlier" meteorite. New Scientist reported that only 0.2 per cent of meteorites belong to this rare group.

Mitchell and her team presented the findings at the Lunar and Planetary Sciences Conference in Texas and submitted a brief with preliminary findings.

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Using an electron microscope and spectroscopic instruments, the scientists studied its composition and found that the meteorite was different from Mercury but formed in a similarly low-oxygen environment. “The magnetic properties of NWA 15915 show evidence of Fe-metal, daubréelite, and troilite. At present, our work supports the view of a large differentiated body in the inner Solar System," the team said.

Such meteorites are rare but possible

The combination of magnetic metal-rich minerals suggested that the meteorite came from a long-dead world. Scientists say that finding such rocks is still possible despite the fact that the original world no longer exists.

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However, they admit that it is extremely rare. Several planets, the Main asteroid belt and the Kuiper Belt still harbour the remains of such worlds.

Scientists are thrilled by the results as they offer a window into the early solar system and how it worked when things were a huge mess.