Meteorites

Pieces of sky fallen to the ground

You can see it with your eyes

Meteorites — An iron meteorite: a dark, melted surface, and much heavier than it looks.

The numbers

Made of rock: 85%
Made of metal: 5%
Biggest found in the US: 34,200lb(15,500 kg)
The biggest fall: 110tons(100 t)

To get an idea

The Willamette meteorite weighs about as much as ten cars put together.

Fun facts

These are not in the book: there was no room on paper.

Some meteorites come from the Moon and from Mars, knocked loose by impacts up there.
The dark, shiny crust that covers them formed in a few seconds, during the fall.
In 2000 a rock of more than fifty tons exploded over Canada: only about twenty pounds of it were picked up on the ground.
Primitive meteorites were never melted: inside they hold the material from when the Solar System was born.
Before they were recognized as stones from the sky, meteorites were considered farmers' tall tales.

Test yourself

The first question is the one printed under the QR code, with the answer the book did not give. The other four only exist here.

Question 1 of 5★ is the one from your book

When does a meteor become a meteorite?

Question 2 of 5

What are most meteorites made of?

Question 3 of 5

How can you tell an iron meteorite?

Question 4 of 5

How much does the biggest meteorite found in the United States weigh?

Question 5 of 5

Why are primitive meteorites so precious to scientists?

Riddles

I traveled for billions of years before stopping in your yard. I am older than any rock you find here, and yet I look like an ordinary stone. What am I?

In the sky everyone looks at me and calls me by one name. As soon as I touch the ground nobody sees me anymore, and I change my name. What am I?

If I am made of metal, a magnet knows me. I weigh more than my size would suggest, and my skin is dark and shiny. What am I?

Try it yourself

Activity 1

Weigh two stones of the same size and compare them. Iron meteorites are surprising precisely because they weigh more than you expect.

Activity 2

Look for the natural history museum nearest to your home: many show a real meteorite, which you can sometimes touch.

The words

meteoroid: The stone while it is still in space, before it enters the air.
fusion crust: The dark skin formed by the heat during the fall.

Sources: Wikidata (Q60186), Wikipedia (Meteorite).