Meteorite From New Jersey Home Contains Prebiotic Molecules, Study Finds

A meteorite tore through the roof of a home in Hillsborough, New Jersey, on July 16, 2024, and left fragments that contain carbon-bearing compounds, amino acids and other prebiotic molecules, @ABC reported. The rock, later named Hillsborough, produced a sonic boom that shook the New York City area before impact.

The homeowner heard the crash and found a hole in the master bedroom ceiling along with black fragments, debris and dust that carried a strong sulfur-like odor.

The owner preserved the pieces using disposable gloves, aluminum foil and glass jars. Mike Zolensky of NASA's Johnson Space Center said the fragments are the most pristine CM1/2 meteorites known. Scientists classified the meteorite as a CM1/2 carbonaceous chondrite in a paper published July 15, 2026, in Science Advances.

Peter Jenniskens, a meteor astronomer for NASA and the SETI Institute and lead author, said the fragments preserved bits of a small primitive asteroid once soaked in concentrated salty fluids. The meteorite measured roughly the size of a heavy airline bag and entered the atmosphere at about 32,000 mph.

Dozens of observers in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Pennsylvania reported the event to the American Meteor Society.

Doppler weather radar at Newark Liberty International Airport tracked a long cloud of pebbles falling from Staten Island to New Jersey.