Damanveer Grewal

Stories

Solar system's first bodies built mostly from heat-forged rock, not ice

As of September 2026: First author of the Nature Astronomy study

The solar system's first solid bodies were built mostly from heat-forged rock, not ice. Chemical tracers in ancient iron meteorites show the earliest planetesimals were 83% to 92% chondrules, with only 8% to 17% of the fine, ice-rich dust scientists call matrix.

Updated Sep 23

Notable Quotes

'Our work shows that this assembly process was remarkably selective from the very beginning.'

from Solar system's first bodies built mostly from heat-forged rock, not ice · Updated Sep 23

'Sulfur content and iron oxidation state have nothing to do with each other chemically, yet they independently converge on the same narrow range.'

from Solar system's first bodies built mostly from heat-forged rock, not ice · Updated Sep 23