How 5,200 tons of extraterrestrial dust end up on Earth every single year

A study carried out by an international team of scientists in 2021 concluded that Earth is constantly bombarded by extraterrestrial dust, with as much as 5,200 tons of the stuff landing on our planet each year. For context, that equates to around 10 Airbus A380-800s, the heaviest commercial passenger airplane. If that sounds like a lot, then that’s because it is, but there’s no chance of you being crushed by falling space dust.

Earth is constantly being showered with space dust

The extraterrestrial dust consists of incredibly small particles of rock and metal, measuring no more than 0.7 millimeters across, similar to the width of a human hair. Millions of these microscopic particles reach Earth all the time, but because of their minuscule size, they generally drift gently to the ground without us realizing.

Where does the space dust come from?

Of the cosmic dust that reaches Earth’s surface, the researchers estimated that around 80% consists of particles shed or ejected from comets as they travel through space.

But not all of the particles arrive on Earth in the same condition. Some survive their journey through the atmosphere and reach the ground as micrometeorites, while others melt during atmospheric entry before cooling into tiny spherical particles known as cosmic spherules.

The study was carried out over a period of 20 years in Antarctica, where space dust can be identified more easily than almost anywhere else on Earth. By collecting and analyzing the dust that fell there, the researchers were able to estimate the amount reaching Earth’s surface across the entire planet.

Why does the discovery matter?

Their findings, however, also raised another question.

Computer models suggested that around 15,000 tons of cosmic dust should reach Earth’s atmosphere every year, almost three times the amount estimated to reach the ground.

Researchers say understanding why there is such a discrepancy could help them better understand the role cosmic dust may have played in delivering water molecules and carbon to the early Earth, providing clues about how life reached our planet in the first place.

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