![]() ![]() Photo by Geoffrey Notkin, copyright Aerolite Meteorites. The Sikhote-Alin shower was the largest recorded witnessed meteorite fall in history. Its surface is covered with scores of small regmaglypts, or thumbprints, created by melting during flight. This fine specimen is described as a complete individual, as it flew through the atmosphere in one piece, without fragmenting. Iron Meteorite: A superb 1,363-gram complete iron meteorite from the Sikhote-Alin meteorite shower which occurred in a remote part of eastern Siberia in the winter of 1947. To stone meteorites, especially the most abundant stone meteorite group-the Though irons may be synonymous with most people's perception of a typical space rock's appearance, they are only one of three main meteorite types, and rather uncommon compared Very heavy, and have often been forged into unusual or even spectacular shapesĪs they plummet, melting, through our planet's atmosphere. It is often said that when the average person imagines what a meteorite looks The lattice-like structure is known as a Widmanstätten Pattern after Count Alois von Beckh Widmanstätten who described the phenomenon in the early 1800s. The slice has been etched with a mild solution of nitric acid to reveal an interlocking pattern of iron-nickel alloys, taenite and kamacite. ![]() Rocks and minerals-including potential meteorites-must be examined in person for proper identification.Iron Meteorite: Detail of a polished and etched slice from a siderite (iron) meteorite found in the Brenham, Kansas strewnfield in 2005 by professional meteorite hunter Steve Arnold. Please refer to their site for additional information. These tips for identifying a meteorite were adapted from a guide from the University of New Mexico Meteorite Museum. A dense rock that leaves a black or red streak probably contains the iron minerals magnetite or hematite, respectively, neither of which are typically found in meteorites.
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