In 2015, Australian David Hall discovered a “gold nugget” while metal detecting in the Marysborough area near Melbourne. “Gold” turned out to be a rare meteorite that is 4.6 billion years old. Scientists shared the results of their research in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria (PRSV).
Meteorites are natural “time machines”; They can tell us about the early history of the solar system, including the formation of planets, and can also help study its age, structure and evolution. Some meteorites contain elements that predate the formation of our system, as well as organic molecules that underlie the emergence of life.
Melbourne Museum geologist Dermot Henry noted the unusual shape of the stone: the surface has carved depressions characteristic of objects passing through the earth’s atmosphere.
The weight of the meteorite, named Marysborough because of the place where it was discovered, is 17 kilograms.
“If you found such a stone, you would be surprised at its weight,” said Henry.
Researchers discovered that it consists mainly of iron and is a type of ordinary chondrite. It was only the 17th meteorite recorded in Marysborough, Victoria, and the second largest meteorite in the area.
According to scientists, the rock most likely came from the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, after the asteroid collision. Radiocarbon dating showed that it may have landed on Earth between 100 and a thousand years ago.
Researchers consider the find to be more valuable than gold due to its scientific importance and rarity.
Previously in Kenya to create Traces of the coexistence of different species of human ancestors.
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Source: Gazeta
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