Meteorites are small extraterresterial bodies that make contact with the surface of the Earth. When traveling throughout space, they are referred to as meteoroids. When a meteoroid begins to fall to Earth, it then becomes known as a meteor. In this article, you will learn of the recent purchase of a meterorite that fetched quite a pretty penny.
Meteorites are actually small asteroids that can be as large as the size of a boulder. When it comes in contact with the atmosphere, air causes the object’s tempreture to increase, creating a fireball or shooting star effect that distributes light and heat. When classifying this interesting item, the mineral composition and structure of the example is examined. It is then classified as one of three meteorite classes, which are stony, stony-iron, as well as iron. Additional sub-classes are then determined sometime after.
This Tuesday, an auction pertaining to rare sculptures from space was held. A meterorite that is thought to originate from an asteroid belt located between Mars and Jupiter was sold for the price of $93,000. The specimen is said to be thousands of years old, weighing a little over 350 pounds of iron. The meteorite, which is also known as “Valley of the Sky,” was uncovered in a crate field that was situated in the Campo del Cielo in Argentina. The auction took place in New York, where various natural history items were up for the taking. The meteorite was one of ten that were sold at a fairly high price.
So, who bought this fascinating object? It was a private collector from the U.S. that is now the lucky owner of this item. He or she did not personally show up for the auction, but chose to bid over the telephone. They stated that they plan to use the item as part of an art display. The price of $93,000 was a welcome surprise for auctioneers, as they only expected to sell the meteorite for between $40,000 and $50,000.
The higher bids placed for these objects present a trend in increasing interest in space, science, as well as objects from space serving as a work of art. It is not uncommon for private art collectors or even interior home designers to show interest in purchasing such objects. The expensive meteorite was part of the Macovich Collection, which was thought to be one of the best collections of aesthetically pleasing space objects throughout the world. The final prices on most of the items well exceeded their estimated value. For example, a piece of the Moon that weighed about 2 grams was sold for $4,250. Another paid $42,000 for a space rock from Africa that had a hole in it.
Throughout history, there have been numerous well-known meteorite discoveries. The Heat Shield Rock was located on the planet, Mars, where the Sayh al Uhaymir is associated with the Moon. The Willamette Meteorite is the largest of its kind to be found within the U.S. Another large specimen is that called the Cape York. The Canyon Diablo was a meteorite that was utilized by pre-historic Native Americans.
