High above us, in space, between the orbits of large planets, millions of very strange and unusual rock fragments are moving. Each such fragment, called the "minor planet", has its own amazing history, inextricably linked with the evolution of the solar system. Many scientists are sure that these strange objects hide the key to unraveling the secrets of the formation of the entire structure of outer space surrounding us. Any small planet (asteroid) is formed as a result of an extraordinary event - the origin of the solar system.
In fact, all these celestial bodies are products and dumb witnesses of a whole series of incredibly powerful cosmic cataclysms that led to the formation of our clear and stable planetary system. Any minor planet is a kind of chronicler of the catastrophic events that took place in this part of Veselny about four and a half billion years ago.
Their uniqueness, in comparison with the nine large planets orbiting the Sun, lies in the fact that asteroids, due to their small size and considerable distance from the star, underwent much smaller evolutionary changes. In other words, formed from the same material as the rest of the objects of our planetary system, asteroids still store ancient evidence of the Great Catastrophe era.
Small planets of the solar system are the only celestial bodies in it that modern science studies in two ways - using astronomy and unmanned spacecraft, as well as directly in laboratories on Earth. In almost all cases when it is possible to determine the exact trajectory of a meteorite, it turns out that it arrived on our planet from a unique place in the visible part of the Universe - the asteroid belt, an analogue of which has not yet been found in any of the open planetary systems.
At this time, there is no doubt that any meteorite and small planet are bodies that have exactly the same origin and composition. In those frequent cases when an asteroid moves along a very elongated elliptical trajectory (which is often characteristic of them) crossing the Earth’s orbit, a small planet has every chance of getting into the laboratory and undergoing thorough research there. What can not be said about the other "inhabitants" of the solar system. This is the fundamental importance of minor planets for world science.
The uniform nature of meteorites and asteroids greatly expands the possibilities of studying the latter. Combining information about small planets obtained by astronomical means with the data of meteorite research, one can get answers to a number of cosmogonic questions. In particular, to solve such a cardinal problem as the origin of the asteroid ring. Perhaps someday an answer will be found to the question: “Was there a large planet in place of this unusually fragmented belt that died as a result of a cosmic cataclysm, leaving millions of debris behind? Or is this just the result of the fragmentation of small cosmic bodies in the process of the formation of our planetary system? ”
But this is not the only meaning of small planets. High molecular weight organic compounds and so-called “organized elements”, which are considered by many scientists to be the remnants of extraterrestrial origin, found in meteorites have raised issues such as the evolution of biological organisms in outer space in modern science. Which, perhaps, will shed light on the origin and development of life on Earth. It is possible that the study of meteorites and minor planets will solve these extremely important problems for mankind.
