Finding a fingerprint on the casing of a fired bullet was once a nearly impossible task. But scientists have at last achieved a breakthrough.

Researchers at Maynooth University in Ireland have now shown they can recover human fingerprints from super-heated bullet cases.

Even better, the prints appear at the "highest level of detail", including pores and ridges.

The details could be sufficient to identify a shooter, although in experiments, the bullets weren't actually shot from a gun; they were heated in a furnace.

Related: Scientists Discover a Hidden Clue to Tell When a Frozen Corpse Died

"The Holy Grail in forensic investigation has always been retrieving prints from fired ammunition casings," claims chemist Eithne Dempsey.

"Traditionally, the intense heat of firing d

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