A device that weighs less than one kilogram is part of a mission that will allow scientists to deliver fourth generation or 4G mobile coverage to the moon in 2019.
Looking through a magnifying glass, Hanley focussed on the most legible fingerprint, which appeared to be covered with a clear finishing coat, like a varnish.
The areas covered by this material were so vast that the ice that deposited it must have been a continental glacier larger than Greenland or Antarctica.
The structure features a streamlined form that is clad externally with stainless steel panels. It is this that led to its comparison with a giant knife blade.
Individual specimens of Allende are covered with a black, glassy crust that formed when their exteriors melted as they were slowed by Earth's atmosphere.