Mysterious jelly found in Cumbria - could it be from outer space?

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Mysterious jelly found in Cumbria - could it be from outer space?
Mysterious jelly found in Cumbria - could it be from outer space?

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Walkers in the Lake District fells have spotted mysterious blobs of translucent jelly which, according to folklore, comes from outer space.

The 'blobs' have appeared in the last week in and around the fells of Patterdale, Cumbria.

The substance is known as 'Star Jelly' and some say it is left over from meteor showers. It appears from time to time around the world, but scientists are confused about exactly what it is and where it comes from.

The last reported sighting was in 2009, when it was discovered in the hills of Scotland. It has been suggested that the substance, which can be tracked back to the 14th Century, could be the remains of frogs, toads or worms, but tests have proved inconclusive.

Rob Shepherd, who owns a holiday-cottage in Patterdale, was one of the first to see the blobs close up.

He said: "I first found out about the jelly from some friends on Monday and the next day I went out into the fells looking for it as I was intrigued.

"They said they had looked it up and it could be 'star jelly' - caused by a meteor shower.

"Within twenty minutes of the walk I came across the jelly myself. There were about nine or ten blobs of it floating on top of some puddles. They were the size of my foot.

"I didn't touch the jelly as it was pretty horrible weather up in the fells so I just took some snaps and made my way down.

"But I will definitely be going up again, and might try and put some in a container, although from everything I have read this stuff evaporates pretty quickly.

"I am not sure why this jelly has materialised but at first I thought it could have something to do with the rutting season.

"There are lots of stags in Scotland where the jelly has occurred before. But I would like to think meteor showers are involved."

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