Dealers in an Adventure with Scientists

Although most people are probably unaware of it, buying and selling meteorites is big business, very big business. The rules of the market place apply to space rocks, just as they do for any commodity that’s in short supply. And how much is this trade worth? Well, no one really knows for sure, but you…

The virtual beauty of space rocks

Meteorites! What’s all the fuss about? They’re just boring old lumps of rock. Black or grey, rough or smooth, a rock is a rock! Of course, everyone is entitled to their opinion, but meteorites are no ordinary rocks. They are the oldest objects you can handle. Some contain grains that predate our Solar System and…

The Curious Case of the Train that Vanished

I think we can all agree that trains are pretty big things; they can’t just disappear without trace, surely? But that’s exactly what happened yesterday to the 10.50am service from Milton Keynes to Manchester Piccadilly. I was heading up with my colleague, Diane Johnson, to the Manchester Museum for the first full team meeting of…

The Lonely Spacecraft: Beagle 2 found

Can a spacecraft be lonely? Probably not. And yet there is something very poignant about the images of Beagle 2 on the surface of Mars that were released on Friday. It seems to have landed in the right place, an amazing feat in itself. The solar panels appear to have partially opened, so it was…