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Meteorite fall
A meteorite fall, also called an observed fall, is a meteorite collected after its fall from outer space, that was also observed by people or automated devices. Any other meteorite is called a "find". There are more than 1,300 documented falls listed in widely used databases, most of which have specimens in modern collections. As of February 2023[update], the Meteoritical Bulletin Database had 1372 confirmed falls.
Observed meteorite falls are important for several reasons.
Material from observed falls has not been subjected to terrestrial weathering, making the find a better candidate for scientific study. Historically, observed falls were the most compelling evidence supporting the extraterrestrial origin of meteorites. Furthermore, observed fall discoveries are a better representative sample of the types of meteorites which fall to Earth. For example, iron meteorites take much longer to weather and are easier to identify as unusual objects, as compared to other types. This may explain the increased proportion of iron meteorites among finds (6.7%), over that among observed falls (4.4%). There is also detailed statistics on falls such as based on meteorite classification.
Only one known meteorite fall, the 2024 Charlottetown meteorite, was recorded with video including audio. The sound of the meteorite shattering upon impact has been described as similar to the sound of breaking ice.
As of January 2019, the Meteoritical Bulletin Database had 1,180 confirmed falls. Statistics by decade are listed in the table in this section.
The German physicist Ernst Chladni, sometimes considered as the father of meteoritics, was the first to publish in modern Western thought (in 1794) the then audacious idea that meteorites are rocks from space. There were already several documented cases, one of the earliest was the Aegospotami meteorite of 467 BC and which became a landmark for 500 years, of which Diogenes of Apollonia said:
With the visible stars revolve stones which are invisible, and for that reason nameless. They often fall on the ground and are extinguished, like the stone star that came down on fire at Aegospotami.
showing that the Greeks had a much earlier idea that meteorites are rocks from space.
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Meteorite fall AI simulator
(@Meteorite fall_simulator)
Meteorite fall
A meteorite fall, also called an observed fall, is a meteorite collected after its fall from outer space, that was also observed by people or automated devices. Any other meteorite is called a "find". There are more than 1,300 documented falls listed in widely used databases, most of which have specimens in modern collections. As of February 2023[update], the Meteoritical Bulletin Database had 1372 confirmed falls.
Observed meteorite falls are important for several reasons.
Material from observed falls has not been subjected to terrestrial weathering, making the find a better candidate for scientific study. Historically, observed falls were the most compelling evidence supporting the extraterrestrial origin of meteorites. Furthermore, observed fall discoveries are a better representative sample of the types of meteorites which fall to Earth. For example, iron meteorites take much longer to weather and are easier to identify as unusual objects, as compared to other types. This may explain the increased proportion of iron meteorites among finds (6.7%), over that among observed falls (4.4%). There is also detailed statistics on falls such as based on meteorite classification.
Only one known meteorite fall, the 2024 Charlottetown meteorite, was recorded with video including audio. The sound of the meteorite shattering upon impact has been described as similar to the sound of breaking ice.
As of January 2019, the Meteoritical Bulletin Database had 1,180 confirmed falls. Statistics by decade are listed in the table in this section.
The German physicist Ernst Chladni, sometimes considered as the father of meteoritics, was the first to publish in modern Western thought (in 1794) the then audacious idea that meteorites are rocks from space. There were already several documented cases, one of the earliest was the Aegospotami meteorite of 467 BC and which became a landmark for 500 years, of which Diogenes of Apollonia said:
With the visible stars revolve stones which are invisible, and for that reason nameless. They often fall on the ground and are extinguished, like the stone star that came down on fire at Aegospotami.
showing that the Greeks had a much earlier idea that meteorites are rocks from space.