They expected added Meadow that they could detect a human microbiome around the person, but were very surprised to see they could identify most occupants by just sampling their microbial cloud.

To test the individualized nature of the personal microbial cloud, University of Oregon researchers sequenced microbes from the air surrounding 11 different people in a sanitized experimental chamber. Scientists have discovered that not only does everyone emit an invisible “microbial cloud”, but that individuals can be recognized by the bacteria that make up their particular cloud.

Then the air in an unoccupied chamber next to them was compared and researchers found that the majority of occupants could be identified by the airborne bacterial emissions surrounding them. While these common human-associated microbes were detected in the air around all people in the study, the authors found that the different combinations of those bacteria were the key to distinguishing among individual people.

By examining the DNA of bacteria in volunteer’s microbiomes, scientists were able to discern if the individual was a male or female.

The cloud samples contained bacteria like Streptococcus, a type of bacteria that most often is found in mouths, and Corynebacterium and Propionibacterium both of which live on the skin of humans.

It is hoped that the team’s findings could lead to better understandings of infectious diseases, and even be used by forensic investigators to establish if a given person has visited a specific location.

Apparently when people say that you’re in their space, it’s not simply a metaphor. A new study suggests that much like our fingerprints and other means of identification, you are surrounded by your own cloud that can pretty much identify you.

Meadow told National Public Radio that the research raised the probability that law enforcement may one day to be able to use such technology to identify criminals by analyzing the microbial cloud a person leaves behind at a crime scene.