Some have not changed since the beginning of the solar system. What’s a rock in space made of? Mostly the same things rocks on Earth are made of actually, except there are less volcanoes, tectonic plates, running water and weather on asteroids and smaller bodies. They’re rocks that have traveled very fast (up to 60 km/s) through the atmosphere, spinning and burning all the while. We’ve adapted a flow chart from some planetary scientists* to help you determine if that rock is from space. Perhaps you can test your rock collection, or why not, the whole backyard!īefore you check through the flow chart, what kinds of properties do you think a meteorite would have? Tens of thousands of meteorites fall to Earth every year, so perhaps you actually found a meteorite on that last camping trip. Click HERE for a list of institutions that will check your meteorite.How do you know if it’s a meteorite or meteorwrong?Įver wondered whether that weird looking rock you saw was something special? Get a saw with a diamond blade and cut that baby open or send it to a University or museum that will do a petrographic test on it for you. If your obsessed with knowing for sure or think you have a planetary meteorite There are virtually no naturally occurring rocks on earth that contain Nickel-Iron so this is the best test!Ĥ. This is of course if the test was done correctly. Test for Nickel-Iron - if it tests positive then it has 99.9% chance of being a meteorite, Use some vinegar to remove the surface rust (the vinegar is acid and it helps to remove some of the rust) Clean up the potential meteorite real good *Less than 4 or 5% of meteorites have a density below 3 but that includes the most expensive planetary meteorites, almost all Earth rocks have densities between 2.5 and 2.99 So if its over 3 it's very likely to be a meteorite if it's not a man made object. Third: divide the first weight by the second. Second: weigh your meteorite in a glass of water by tying it to a string and not letting it touch the bottom of the glass then subtract the weight of the glass of water so that you have only the weight of the water that was displaced by the volume of the potential meteorite. First: weigh your meteorite on a precise scale. Do a scratch test on a tile after you clean it up- if it leaves a brown, red or black mark then it's not a meteorite. Clean meteorites do not streak on a tile. Does it have stress fractures, these are cracks in the surface and are due to expansion of frozen water inside Does it have flow lines, these are lines from wind friction- if it does that's a great sign Does it have rust spots-meteorites usually rust from weathering Does it feel dense-most meteorites have a density of over 3, while most earth rocks are in between 2.5 and 3 Does it stick to magnet-if it does that's a good sign Does it have regmaglypts- these are described as thumbprints or small indents, if it does that's a good sign Does it have fusion crust- if it looks melted on the surface that's a good sign Is it brown or black- meteorites are usually these colors either because it just fell (Black) or it has been lying there and has weathered over time from rain, wind, oxygen(causes it to rust) and sunlight (Brown)?
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