Antarctica has it So much for it when it comes to meteorite hunting. Dark rocks stand out against the frozen landscape. Its dry climate reduces bad weather. And even when meteorites sink into the ice, they are often brought to the surface by rippling glaciers.
Despite these ideal conditions, finding large pieces of space rock is rare.
A group of researchers has just returned from the ice-covered continent with five new meteorites, including an exceptionally large specimen.
The large find of this transport weighed 7.6 kg (16.8 lb), which puts it in the list of the top 100 by volume of meteorites recovered from Antarctica in the last century. Considering that about 45,000 people were recovered during that time, that’s saying something.
This beast of a space rock is now being returned to the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, where it will be closely studied all along with small rocks. Scientists can learn a lot from the travels of meteorites owe it to our planet.
“Size doesn’t necessarily matter when it comes to meteorites, and even tiny micrometeorites can be of incredible scientific value.” says cosmologist Maria ValdesFrom the Field Museum in Illinois. “But of course finding a large meteorite like this is really rare and exciting.”
While it might be easier to spot meteorites in Antarctica, the continent isn’t exactly easy to traverse, with its freezing cold conditions and remote location. The team involved in the discovery spent several days camping in the wilderness, traveling by foot and snowmobile.
It also helps to know where the meteorites are likely to be. Here, the researchers used a “treasure map” that was published last yearWhich uses clues found in satellite imagery — such as measurements of ice flow, temperature and surface slope — to make educated guesses, using artificial intelligence, as to where to find the new rocks.
“Going on an adventure by exploring unknown areas is exciting,” says geologist Vincent Debaylefrom the Free University of Brussels in Belgium.
“But we also had to deal with the fact that the reality on the ground is much more difficult than the beauty of satellite imagery.”
The map used by the researchers is believed to be about 80% accurate in terms of the directions it gives, and its creators have calculated that more than 300,000 meteorites are out there in Antarctica, waiting to be found.
Despite the favorable conditions in Antarctica for the discovery of meteorites, scientists believe that we are Still missing Find a lot of them, especially those rich in iron. Part of the reason may be that these types of meteorites heat up in the sun, melt the ice around them, and sink out of sight below the surface.
However, there is now an exciting new transport of these rocks ready and waiting to be examined closely – and somewhere in the newly recovered meteorites there must be traces of the history of the solar system in which we are found.
“The larger the sample size of meteorites, the better we can understand our solar system and the better we can understand ourselves.” Valdes says.