Tiny fragments of rock brought back from an asteroid in near-Earth solar orbit are so old, they predate the Solar System.

A new analysis of samples of asteroid Ryugu has revealed the presence of mineral grains forged in the outflows or explosions of old stars before our own Sun formed.

As identified by previous research, these presolar grains reveal Ryugu is very similar to a class of meteorites known as Ivuna-type carbonaceous (CI) chondrites. However, the presence of some fragile grains indicate that parts of Ryugu may be unchanged since the asteroid formed.

The 13 regions at the moon’s South Pole are a long way from where Neil Armstrong explored.

The impact crater which measures 8.5km in width, is believed to have been caused by a massive asteroid measuring around 400 meters in width.

The newly-found, three-mile-wide natural satellite orbits the 17-mile-wide asteroid Polymele, which is about 480 million miles from Earth.

Launched in 1977, the twin Voyager probes are NASA’s longest-operating mission and the only spacecraft ever to explore interstellar space.