Why are scientists interested in interstellar dust?
A. Interstellar dust particles are the only matter from other stars that reaches our solar system, and scientists are eager to get their hands on them. In particular, scientists want to compare the composition and the proportions of the different isotopes that make up interstellar dust grains to those prevalent in our Sun and solar system. Are there many more “Suns” out there, or is our home star unique? Studying the composition of distant stars will help us answer that question, and Stardust’s samples give scientists an opportunity to do just that.
