A high-flying Bedford schoolgirl has won UK and EU science prizes for her work on an out-of-this-world project.

Last summer 17-year-old Elisabeth Muller, a pupil at Bedford High School, spent six weeks studying the mineralogy of a piece of lunar meteorite at the Open University in Milton Keynes – work which will help lead to a better understanding of the moon's composition.

She was rewarded last week when presented with the Royal Society International Expedition Prize at the UK Young Scientists' and Engineers' Fair.

She also won the EU Contest Prize.

She said: "I was shellshocked when I heard my name called – I actually tripped down the stairs!"

Not only will she now go on to represent the UK at the European Union Contest for Young Scientists in Copenhagen in September, but she also won a ten-day trip on a research ship around the sub-Antarctic Islands in December.

Elisabeth, of Hanslope, Bucks, got involved with the Nuffield Bursary-funded project after seeing an advertisement at the school which she has attended for the past seven years.

"It's rare that projects come up which involve geology – my particular area of interest. So I was absolutely overjoyed when I got asked to work on this project as I didn't really expect to get onto the scheme."

She spent a total of 210 hours studying moon rock MIL05035, a sample from a meteorite discovered three years ago in Antarctica which had been preserved in ice for more than 10,000 years.

"I conducted various experiments on the sample and presented my findings a number of times.

"The results are now part of a database of lunar information, and, in time, all of these results will give us a better understanding of the moon.

"It's really exciting to think that the future missions of the European Space Agency may be helped, even in a tiny way, by the work that I have done."

Julie Eldridge, headteacher of Bedford High School, said: "We were delighted to hear of Lizzie's success and offer her hearty congratulations on these achievements. They present her with wonderful opportunities."

Elisabeth now hopes to study earth sciences at St Peter's College, Oxford, next year.

Sir David King, president of the British Association for the Advancement of Science, said: "The achievement of the young people who gain these prizes is not just winning an exciting trip or a handsome trophy.

"In completing their projects they have been able to work like real scientists and engineers, and to find out for themselves how enjoyable and rewarding that can be. It is terrific to see this all come together at the fair and I hope that many more young people will have this opportunity in the future."