One leading idea is that space rocks such as comets and asteroids delivered water to the Earth through impacts. As a planetary scientist, I'm curious about the kinds of space objects that could have led to the formation of the oceans. For the past few years, I've been studying a type of object that I called a dark comet ' which could be just the culprit. In a new study my colleagues and I published in December 2024, we discovered two classes of these elusive dark comets The solar system is teaming with small bodies such as comets and asteroids. These space rocks were fundamental building blocks of planets in the early solar system, while the remaining leftovers are the comets and asteroids seen today. These objects are also avenues by which material can be transported throughout the solar system. These small worlds can contain things such as rubble, ice and organic material as they fly through space. That's why researchers see them as good potential candidates for delivering ices...
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