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Updated: Jul 12, 2026

Experimental Methods of Dust Charging and Mobilization on Surfaces with Exposure to Ultraviolet Radiation or Plasmas
Published on: April 3, 2018
Discovery of nucler tracks in interplanetary dust
Abstract:
Nuclear tracks have been identified in interplanetary dust particles (IDP's) collected from the stratosphere. The presence of tracks unambiguously confirms the extraterrestrial nature of IDP's, and the high track densities (10(10) to 10(11) per square centimeter) suggest an exposure age of approximately 10(4) years within the inner solar system. Tracks also provide an upper temperature limit for the heating of IDP's during atmospheric entry, thereby making it possible to distinguish between pristine and thermally modified micrometeorites.
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