The pieces of Libyan desert glass that formed the basis of the research study. (Image credit: Elizaveta Kovaleva)
The Great Sand Sea Desert extends over a location of 72,000 square kilometers connecting Egypt and Libya. If you discover yourself in a specific part of the desert in south-east Libya and south-western parts of Egypt, you’ll identify pieces of yellow glass spread throughout the sandy landscape.
Described in a clinical paper in 1933, it is referred to as Libyan desert glass. Mineral collectors worth it for its appeal, its relative rarity and its secret. A piece of the glass can be found in an Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamun’s burial place and details about the piece can be found here.
The origin of the glass has actually beenthe topic of disputeamongst researchers for nearly a century. Theories recommend it could have been caused by lightning strikes (“fulgurites— glass that forms from a fusion of sand and soil where they are struck by lightning) or the outcome of sedimentary or hydrothermal procedures.
Now, thanks to innovative microscopy technology, Libyan desert glass is believed to have originated from the effect of a meteorite on the Earth’s surface.
