Mystery debris?

[Bo’sunParticipant @bosun58570]

Hello All,

I live in South Essex, and around ten days ago I noticed lots of small specks on my car, which I assumed at the time to be some sort of airborne seed casings, so I just brushed them off.  The following day they were back again, albeit not quite as many.  On closer inspection, they are small gritty lumps 3 – 4mm across (not unlike specks of mud).  This time I washed them off, not wanting to damage the paintwork.  I’ve also noticed them on the north side of our conservatory, and the back doors of my neighbours van (that also faces north).  Up until now they are still appearing, but only a few at a time.

Also, while collecting this sample, one of the pieces was damp (so I guess it had just appeared) and it smeared across the paper used to collect the sample.

I’ve contacted the Met Office, but they have no suggestions and indicated no reports of “Sahara dust”.  And my local authority were no help (no surprise there).

I’ve also contacted the Environment Agency but still await their response.

Any ideas or thoughts as to what they might be and where they’ve come from?  Or whom else I could contact?

I’ve tried to upload an image of said debris, but the forum doesn’t seem to like msg files.  Unless anyone out there knows if there’s a way?

[BazyleParticipant @bazyle]

Heath fires in Suffolk on the news. Possible debris being washed out of the sky by high altitude rain that itself mostly evaporates before it reaches the ground.
The Sahara dust only appears with prolonged southerly winds and I think it has been mostly northwesterly of late.

[Dave HalfordParticipant @davehalford22513]

I’ve had that when geese fly over my car from the local lake, which is about 1/2 a mile away

[howardbParticipant @howardb]

Dust from the Sahara is usually orange in colour, if we get a heavy dose of it here in NW France it turns the sky a weird orange colour, and the cars need a hose off, which we can’t do ATM as hose use is banned.

[not done it yetParticipant @notdoneityet]

What goes up, must eventually come down.  Lots of conflagrations where the ash and particles are being carried high into the sky (some moving/spreading the fire front, by virtue of being flying embers).

[Nigel Graham 2Participant @nigelgraham2]

They can’t have come far if they are 3-4mm diameter.

Any building work fairly near?

[Bo’sunParticipant @bosun58570]

Food for thought Dave, but we don’t live anywhere near open water that would support Geese.  Also, it’s not Goose poo, at least not the stuff you wade through in some parks and gardens.

NDIY.  I don’t believe it’s any sort of ash judging by the piece that smeared on the paper.  It was very clay like, clearly being damp before it landed.  Some pieces in the sample had smooth faces, again indicating being damp before landing on the car.

Nigel.  No building works close enough, and the bits deposited on the conservatory would have needed to travel a long way.  And yes, I think the size of the particles rules out drifting on the wind.

[TrickyParticipant @tricky]

Could they be bat droppings? We get a lot of these on our cars.

[Bo’sun]

On Bo’sun Said:

Food for thought Dave, but we don’t live anywhere near open water that would support Geese.  Also, it’s not Goose poo, at least not the stuff you wade through in some parks and gardens.

NDIY.  I don’t believe it’s any sort of ash judging by the piece that smeared on the paper.  It was very clay like, clearly being damp before it landed.  Some pieces in the sample had smooth faces, again indicating being damp before landing on the car.

Nigel.  No building works close enough, and the bits deposited on the conservatory would have needed to travel a long way.  And yes, I think the size of the particles rules out drifting on the wind.

Not pooh just mud balls and they only need a muddy pond and unlike Swans they can take off from grass.

[Bo’sunParticipant @bosun58570]

Good point Dave, but I have my doubts due to their relatively consistent size, shape quantity and distribution.  I can’t think of where they might have originated either.  They also appear to be spread over quite a large area.

[Bo’sunParticipant @bosun58570]

After much key tapping and swearing, I hope this image of the “Mystery debris” uploads OK?

[bernard towersParticipant @bernardtowers37738]

possibly whipped up from recently harvested fields by mini tornados?

[Bo’sunParticipant @bosun58570]

Another plausible cause Bernard, but the fact that some appear to be damp before they fall probably rules that out, as we’ve had no rain for weeks around here.  The piece in the centre and to the right looks smooth, as if it were damp before it fell.  And it’s been occurring almost daily for some time, although it now seems to be tailing off a bit.

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

 

[Robert Atkinson 2Participant @robertatkinson2]

Slight thread drift. That explosion was interesting. Using Google maps I found the location. Street view had captured views inside a large building with a large number of 1 ton bulk bags stacked up. Presumably these were fertiliser. The building also had solar panels on the same end as the bags…

https://www.google.com/maps/@51.6630373,0.5442625,367m/data=!3m1!1e3?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI2MDcyOS4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D

The large building with light roof.

https://www.google.com/maps/@51.6633267,0.5446523,3a,62.7y,83.54h,84.2t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1seEkVcrTxHZqy3VlXzAvj_w!2e0!6shttps:%2F%2Fstreetviewpixels-pa.googleapis.com%2Fv1%2Fthumbnail%3Fcb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile%26w%3D900%26h%3D600%26pitch%3D5.8040555256918935%26panoid%3DeEkVcrTxHZqy3VlXzAvj_w%26yaw%3D83.5415795937872!7i16384!8i8192?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI2MDcyOS4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D

Zoom in a bit.

Robert

[Bo’sunParticipant @bosun58570]

Hello Michael,

While we’re not a million miles from the site of that explosion, it occurred a while after I first found the debris.  The debris is like a gritty clay material.  It’s certainly got me puzzled.  I washed the car yesterday, only to find a few hours later at least a dozen of the particles all over the car again.

 

 

 

 

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Thanks for the clarification. Bo’sun

I had mistakenly deduced that exploded fertiliser pellets might end-up looking like that.

MichaelG.

[Clive FarrarParticipant @clivefarrar90441]

swallow or swift nest building material.

late in the year I know but?

[Bo’sunParticipant @bosun58570]

Thanks Clive, I had considered that, and so far the most plausible cause.  However, it’s spread over quite a large area between me and my neighbours, a distance of at least 40 metres.  The particles are also relatively uniform, and there’s no evidence of associated nest sites nearby, and no obvious sightings of said birds.  Plus, with the debris also being on the north side of my conservatory (and the north side of my neighbours van), the nest building material will have travelled a long way from any likely sources.  And, with the debris still appearing after the best part of a fortnight, I’m curious to say the least.

[bernard towersParticipant @bernardtowers37738]

If you have a field nearby put a piece of board out there and see if the particles have spread that distance

[Ches Green UKParticipant @chesgreenuk]

Bo’sun,

Is there a quarry doing blasting in your locality?

Something like what is happening in Fife… https://greens.scot/StopSilicaSandsBlasting

Ches

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

My car gathers a layer of ‘sugar’ if parked within twenty feet of a lime tree (it’s aphid poop) and that seems to act as a magnet for rather fine (up to 1mm) black gritty stuff that may be other insect frass?

Neil

[JAParticipant @ja]

The swifts have gone and the starlings use my car for target practice.

JA

[Bo’sunParticipant @bosun58570]

Ches, certainly no quarrying nearby.  As I’ve said, Clive’s suggestion is likely the most plausible, but still a number of factors don’t seem to quite add up.  Size of area covered with said debris, absence of nests nearby, absence of bird activity, distance from likely source, debris sitting on vertical surfaces, uniformity of size and possibly the time of year.

[Paul Mills 4Participant @paulmills4]

Do you have bats in your area? no sign during day come out around dusk, so you might not see them. Their guano is about the same size as mice droppings but can be quite crumbly

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