From Mars To New York: Largest-Known Martian Meteorite On Earth Sold For $5.3 Million
The Mars meteorite was initially offered with advance bids of $1.9 million and $2 million.
The largest known piece of Mars on Earth has now been sold for over $5 million. The auction of the Martian meteorite took place at an event in New York on Wednesday, July 16. The bidding event also featured other rare geological and archaeological items, reported AP.
According to records, the Martian rock was auctioned for $4.3 million, with additional fees bringing the total to nearly $5.3 million. However, it was not the highest bid of the day. A rare juvenile dinosaur skeleton stole the spotlight, drawing in over $30 million.
While the identity of the buyer has not been revealed, Sotheby's confirmed that this is the most valuable meteorite ever sold at an auction.
What is NWA 16788, the Largest Martian Meteorite on Earth?
The rare meteorite weighs 54 pounds and was first discovered in the Sahara Desert in Niger in November 2023. According to Sotheby's, the rock, named NWA 16788, broke off the Martian surface after a massive asteroid impact. The initials 'NWA" stand for Northwest Africa, where it was recovered. It is believed to have travelled an astonishing 140 million miles before landing on Earth.
The Mars meteorite was initially offered with advance bids of $1.9 million and $2 million. However, the live bidding was less intense than expected. The meteorite is reportedly 70% larger than the next-largest piece of Mars found on Earth. This piece measures approximately 15 inches by 11 inches by 6 inches.
Although it is unclear exactly when the rock broke off from Mars, scientists estimate the event occurred in relatively recent geological time. It is said to have 'deep red hue" and a 'glassy crust", as per Sotheby's.
Cassandra Hatton, Vice Chairman for Science and Natural History at Sotheby's, said the rock's identity was confirmed through specialised laboratory analysis. It was tested for chemical compositions that matched those found in other Martian meteorites, including samples examined during NASA's Viking space probe missions.
The Martian rock has been classified as an olivine-microgabbroic shergottite, meaning it was formed by the slow cooling of Martian magma deep below the planet's surface. Interestingly, out of the 77,000 officially recognised meteorites found on Earth, there are only 400 Martian meteorites identified so far.
view comments
First Published:
Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
5 hours ago
- The Hindu
Landing on the red planet
Up, up, and away! The question of whether Mars supports life, or if it has in any point of its history, has been on the minds of people – both scientists and common folk – for a very long time. Flyby explorations of the red planet in the 1960s ended hopes of an inhabited world. In 1971, the Mariner 9 mission entered orbit around Mars and the photographs it returned showed surface features that could have been generated by liquids that had flown. In such circumstances, the logical next step in Mars exploration was to place landers on the surface, with the necessary technology to analyse Martian soil and atmosphere. Budget constraints, however, meant that the concept of a single, long-duration Mars lander had to be revised and replaced with two orbiters and two landers with a shorter planned surface observation time. The result was the two-part Viking mission, with both Viking 1 and Viking 2 having an orbiter and lander. Using smaller launch vehicles and scaled-down mission objectives, the mission aimed at investigating Mars for signs of life with a targeted minimum of 90 days on the planet. The Viking project was managed by NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. While the orbiters of the twin spacecraft were based on the Mariner 9 spacecraft and built by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California, the lander was built by Martin Marietta under contract to NASA Langley with JPL in charge of handling operations. On August 20, 1975, Viking 1 was launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida. Even as it was making its way on its 304-day voyage to Mars, its twin, Viking 2, was launched on September 9 to begin its 320-day journey. From one anniversary to another On June 19, 1976, Viking 1 was in the vicinity of our neighbouring planet, entering into an elliptical orbit around Mars. The mission planners had grand ideas, planning for the Viking 1 lander to reach the Martian surface on July 4. This was special because it would have meant that the landing would coincide with the bicentennial of the U.S. – the 200th anniversary of the nation's founding. Even the best laid plans, however, might not fruition. Photographs that Viking 1 sent from its orbit showed the landing site that had originally been chosen for July 4 was rougher than expected. As celebrations made way for safety, another two weeks were needed to search and finalise a new, safer touchdown site for landing. Viking 1's orbit was adjusted and on July 20, the lander separated from the orbiter and began its descent towards the Martian surface. Once the soft landing in the Chryse Planitia region of Mars was successful, it almost immediately started beaming back photographs of its landing site. Even though the bicentennial celebrations in Mars had been missed out, Viking 1 lander had made it to the Martian surface on another anniversary – one that is now equally revered, even throughout the world. For it was on July 20, 1969 that the Apollo 11 mission had achieved its grand success, allowing human beings to set foot on the moon for the first time ever. Viking 2, meanwhile, entered into orbit around the red planet on July 25, with its lander successfully landing on the surface in Utopia Planitia on September 3. Picture perfect The lander, which weighed 978 kg and looked in a way like a much bigger version of the Surveyor lunar lander, began relaying back information from the time it separated from the orbiter. This meant that even during the complicated atmospheric entry sequence, Viking 1 lander was taking air samples. Once landed, the spacecraft took in its surroundings. In addition to high-quality, high-resolution images, the lander also managed panoramic views. While the 300-degree panorama of the lander's surroundings showed parts of the spacecraft too, what mattered more was the rolling plains of the Martian environment. Though pictures were high on the agenda, the lander did several other things as well. The seismometer might have failed, but the other instruments and equipment provided valuable data. Instruments recorded temperatures on the Martian surface and these ranged from minus 86 degrees Celsius before dawn to minus 33 degrees Celsius in the afternoon. A little over a week after landing, Viking 1's robot arm scooped up the first soil samples on July 28 and this was deposited into a special biological laboratory. Data from Viking 1 indicated that there were no traces of life, but it did enhance our understanding of the planet's surface and atmosphere. It helped characterise Mars as a cold planet with volcanic soil and an abundance of sulphur, different from any known material found on the Earth and its moon. The Martian atmosphere was shown to be thin, dry and cold, and primarily composed of carbon dioxide. Evidence for ancient river beds and vast flooding were also gathered. Outdoing expectations The primary mission for both Viking 1 and Viking 2 ended in November 1976. Activities, however, continued well beyond that as both orbiters and landers exceeded their planned 90-day lifetimes by a distance. While Viking 1 and 2 orbiters continued their missions until August 17, 1980, and July 24, 1978, respectively, the landers observed weather changes on the surface until November 11, 1982, and April 12, 1980, respectively. The Viking 1 lander first started sending out daily weather reports as part of the Viking Monitor Mission, which was eventually replaced to be a weekly report. Following the death of Thomas A. Mutch, who led the imaging team for the Viking project, on October 6, 1980, the Viking 1 lander and the site where it remains were renamed the Thomas Mutch Memorial Station. The Viking 1 lander operated faultlessly until November 11, 1982, when a human error brought about its end. A faulty command sent from Earth interrupted communications with the lander, and further attempts to resume contact were of no avail. The landers of Viking 1 and 2 together returned 4,500 images from the two landing sites. Having been on the Martian surface for 2,307 Earth days or 2,245 Martian sols, Viking 1 lander set the record for the longest operating spacecraft on the surface of Mars. Viking 1 held this record until May 19, 2010, when the Opportunity rover finally broke the record. Opportunity set that record at 14.5 Earth years or 5,111 sols, with its mission ending only during a planet-wide dust storm in 2018.
Indian Express
6 hours ago
- Indian Express
Man dies after MRI machine pulls him in by chain necklace
A 61-year-old man has died after being pulled into an MRI machine in New York while wearing a heavy chain necklace, according to police and his wife. The incident happened on Wednesday afternoon at Nassau Open MRI, a facility on Long Island. Police said the man entered the scanning room while the machine was already running. The metal necklace he was wearing was pulled by the machine's strong magnetic force, causing him to hit the device. The man, identified by his wife as Keith McAllister, died on Thursday, AP reported. Nassau County Police have not officially released his name. His wife, Adrienne Jones-McAllister, told News 12 Long Island that she was having an MRI scan on her knee when she asked the technician to call her husband for help getting off the table. 'When he came near me, the machine suddenly turned him around and pulled him in,' she said in a recorded interview. 'He hit the MRI. I told them, 'Turn the machine off, call 911, do something!'' 'He waved goodbye to me and then his whole body went limp,' she said. Jones-McAllister also said her husband had previously mentioned the 20-pound chain he used for weight training, and they had spoken casually about it during an earlier visit. A person who answered the phone at the MRI facility on Friday declined to comment, and no one answered on Saturday. This is not the first time someone has died in New York due to an MRI machine. In 2001, a 6-year-old boy was killed at Westchester Medical Center when an oxygen tank was pulled into the scanner. That case was settled for $2.9 million, according to court records. The National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering warns that MRI machines have strong magnets that can pull in metal objects, including wheelchairs and oxygen tanks, with force.
Mint
11 hours ago
- Mint
Largest piece of Mars fetches $5.3 million at auction, young dinosaur skeleton steals the show
New York City recently hosted an auction of rare geological and archaeological objects, featuring the largest piece of Mars ever found which was sold for over $5 million. However, it was a rare young dinosaur skeleton which actually stole the show when it fetched more than $30 million in a bidding frenzy. The 54-pound (25-kilogram) rock, officially named NWA 16788 was sold for approximately $5.3 million, including fees and costs, making it the most valuable meteorite ever auctioned. The rock was discovered in the Sahara Desert, Niger by a meteorite hunter in November 2023, after it was blown off the surface of Mars by a massive asteroid strike, according to Sotheby's report, cited by AP. The red, brown and gray meteorite is about 70% larger than the next largest piece of Mars found on Earth and represents nearly 7% of all the Martian pieces currently on this planet, AP reported. Cassandra Hatton, vice chairman for science and natural history at Sotheby's highlighted the rarity of the find, noting that only 400 Martian meteorites out of the more than 77,000 officially recognized meteorites found on Earth are Martian. 'This Martian meteorite is the largest piece of Mars we have ever found by a long shot,' Hatton said. 'So it's more than double the size of what we previously thought was the largest piece of Mars.' Stealing the show was a rare young dinosaur skeleton that fetched an astounding $30.5 million, including fees and costs after a six minutes bidding war among six interested participants. The skeleton is identified as a Ceratosaurus nasicornis, which is one of only four known skeletons of its species and the only juvenile one. The species resemblesthe Tyrannosaurus rex but is smaller. The bidding began with a high advance offer of $6 million, quickly escalating during the live round with bids $500,000 higher than the last and later $1 million higher than the last before ending at $26 million. The winner plans to loan dinosaur skeleton to an institution, Sotheby's told AP. This sale marks the third-highest amount paid for a dinosaur at an auction. A Stegosaurus skeleton called 'Apex' holds the record after it was sold for $44.6 million last year at Sotheby's. Parts of the juvenile dinosaur were found in 1996 near Laramie, Wyoming, at Bone Cabin Quarry, which is considered a gold mine for dinosaur bones. It was acquired last year by Fossilogic, a Utah-based fossil preparation and mounting company. The skeleton is more than 6 feet (2 meters) tall and nearly 11 feet (3 meters) long, and is believed to belong to the lateJurassic period, about 150 million years ago. Ceratosaurus dinosaurs could grow up to 25 feet (7.6 meters) long, while the T. rex could be 40 feet (12 meters) long, the news agency reported.
