Meteorite that crash landed through Georgia man’s roof is 20 million years older than Earth, scientists say
A space rock that struck a hole in the house of a georgia resident earlier this summer could be 20 million years older than our planet, according to the researchers.
The meteorite crossed the sky like a fire ball on June 26, just before a piece of it hit a house in the city of McDonough. A researcher from the University of Georgia (UGA) studied the recovered equipment from the house and found that the meteorite was formed about 4.56 billion years ago – which makes him approximately 20 million years more than Earth.
“This particular meteor which has entered the atmosphere has a long history before going to McDonough’s ground”, ” Scott HarrisA researcher from the UGA Geology Department, said in a statement.
Harris’ analysis revealed that the newly named McDonough meteorite came beyond March And is linked to a much larger asteroid that has broken about half a billion years.
“It belongs to a group of asteroids in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter That we now think that we can attach to a much larger asteroid rupture about 470 million years ago, “said Harris.” But in this rupture, some parts are put in earth orbits, and if they are given long enough, orbit around the sun And the orbit of the earth around the sun ends up in the same place, at the same time. “”
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The McDonough meteorite made a whole entrance on June 26. NASA Meteoroid Environment Office estimated that the object of 3 feet wide (1 meter) moved to 29,000 MPH (47,000 km / h), while the American Meteor Society received more than 240 reports of a fire ball across the Southeast. Many people also heard and felt a sound boom, that some have confused with an earthquake, the Smithsonian Magazine reported Shortly after the event.
The meteorite slowed down a lot as it was traveling in our atmosphere and separated as it was getting closer to the ground, but it was still moving fairly quickly to cause damage to the impact.
“When they [meteorites] Meeting the earth, our atmosphere is very good to slow them down, “said Harris.” But you talk about something that is double the size of a shell at 50 caliber, traveling at least 1 kilometer per second [0.6 miles per second]. It’s like running 10 football fields in a second. “”
When part of the meteorite hit the house in McDonough, it went directly through the roof, ceiling and heating, ventilation and air conditioning channel (CVC). He left a breach in the floor of the living room and made a noise and vibrations that looked like a shot at close range, according to the press release. The piece of rock has been pulverized in fragments on the impact, diffusing the dust of space around the room that the resident of the house still finds today.
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Harris used optical and electronic microscopy to analyze 0.8 ounces (23 grams) of rock fragments recovered from the house. Based on this analysis, he believes that the meteorite is a stony meteorite (chondritis) which is low in the metal content, according to the press release.
The researchers will continue to analyze the rock fragments of the UGA, while certain additional parts that landed in the region will be exhibited at the Tellus Science Museum in Cartersville.
Meteorites are relatively rare in Georgia; It is only the 27th documented in the history of the state and the sixth to have been assisted by the fall, according to the press release. However, Harris noted that they are now recorded more frequently.
“This is something that expected once every few decades and not several times within 20 years,” said Harris. “Modern technology in addition to an attentive audience will help us recover more and more meteorites.”
