Exceptional Oriented Meteorite

Exceptional Oriented Meteorite.

“This extraordinary specimen has a remarkable regmaglypt-rich surface where layers of melt were deposited and buffeted by atmospheric turbulence. The marks resemble finger-indentations in modeling clay.”

Dr Alan E. Rubin, PhD Department of Earth, Planetary, and Space Sciences, UCLA

DAG 1069 - Oriented Chrondrite Meteorite, 3.9 KG

Detached from its parent body by a mighty impact, this magnificent, oriented meteorite travelled over a hundred million miles through space before falling to Earth in the North African desert. It is covered in beautiful regmaglypts, which create a stunning impression of flow across its surface. These elongated dimples formed when streaks of superheated molten rock streamed off the meteor as it blazed through the atmosphere. The entire piece is coated in a glossy, umber-coloured fusion crust and close examination reveals remnants of encrusted, orange dirt.

Whilst most meteors tumble as they travel through the Earth's atmosphere, oriented meteorites maintain a stable trajectory as they fall, obtaining a dome shape due to the intense heat of atmospheric entry. This phenomenon is extremely rare, with less than one percent of meteorites falling in this way.

“It was a cold November 2001 morning like so many others on the Dar Al Ghani plateau, the sun was rising and lighting up the sky pink. The scent of coffee intoxicated the air. After a frugal breakfast, a check in the jeep and a quick rearrangement of the tent, we started working always with the sun behind us. After a few small finds, around noon, a darker spot was outlined on the horizon. As soon as we arrived on the spot, we were breathless. A beautiful oriented meteorite, full of ablatures. A few quick photos and we started off again, thinking that, after this discovery, all the others would not have given us the same joy we felt in finding what would later become DAG 1609.” - Lina and Giorgio Tomelleri

Height: 20.32 cm (8 inches)

Provenance:

Discovered in November 2001 by Giorgio Tomelleri, Dar al Ghani plateau, Libya (27° 34’ 10”N, 16° 20’ 22”E).

Published:

Meteoritical Bulletin, no. 107, MAPS 55, 460-462 - ArtAncient, Extraterrestrial (2022).

This object is eligible for a Certificate of BADA Provenance