Winchcombe meteorite: is it the UK's largest fireball?

A PhD student studying what scientists believe to be the most significant space rock ever recovered from Britain says: "It's pretty exciting.

Niamh Topping, 23, is in her first year at the University of Leicester studying the reactions of water and rocks in the early solar system.

The Winchcombe meteorite crashed into the Gloucestershire town of Winchcombe in 2021 .

Studies suggest it contains water that almost perfectly matches Earth's.

Ms Topping said: "If we look at something like Winchcombe, we are effectively looking back about 4.6 billion years at the formation of the planets and solar system.

"So that tells us more about how they came about and, in a way, where we came from."

Video journalist: Chris Waring

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