
A meteorite fall, also called an observed fall, is a
meteorite
A meteorite is a rock (geology), rock that originated in outer space and has fallen to the surface of a planet or Natural satellite, moon. When the original object enters the atmosphere, various factors such as friction, pressure, and chemical ...
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. , the Meteoritical Bulletin Database had 1372 confirmed falls.
Importance
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
Weather is the state of the atmosphere, describing for example the degree to which it is hot or cold, wet or dry, calm or stormy, clear or cloud cover, cloudy. On Earth, most weather phenomena occur in the lowest layer of the planet's atmo ...
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
In meteoritics, a meteorite classification system attempts to group similar meteorites and allows scientists to communicate with a standardized terminology when discussing them. Meteorites are classified according to a variety of characteristics ...
.
Only one known meteorite fall, the 2024 Charlottetown meteorite
The Charlottetown meteorite was a meteorite fall observed on July 25, 2024. It is notable as the first meteorite known with video and audio of the impact recorded and as the only known meteorite fall in Prince Edward Island, Canada.
The Charlott ...
, 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.
List of meteorite falls
Oldest
The German physicist Ernst Chladni
Ernst Florens Friedrich Chladni (, , ; 30 November 1756 – 3 April 1827) was a German physicist and musician. His most important work, for which he is sometimes labeled the father of acoustics, included research on vibrating plates and th ...
, sometimes considered as the father of meteoritics
Meteoritics is the science that deals with meteors, meteorites, and meteoroids. It is closely connected to cosmochemistry, mineralogy and geochemistry. A specialist who studies meteoritics is known as a ''meteoriticist''.
Scientific research in ...
, 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
Diogenes of Apollonia ( ; ; 5th century BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher, and was a native of the Milesian colony Apollonia in Thrace. He lived for some time in Athens. He believed air to be the one source of all being from which all oth ...
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.
Below is a list of eight confirmed falls pre-1600 AD. However, unlike the Loket (Elbogen) and Ensisheim
Ensisheim (; in Alsatian Ansa ()) is a commune in the Haut-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. It is also the birthplace of the composer Léon Boëllmann. The Germanic origins of the village's name reflect the area's histo ...
meteorites, not all are as well-documented.
Largest
While most confirmed falls involve masses between less than one kg to several kg, some reach 100 kg or more. A few have fragments that total even more than one metric ton
The tonne ( or ; symbol: t) is a unit of mass equal to 1,000 kilograms. It is a non-SI unit accepted for use with SI. It is also referred to as a metric ton in the United States to distinguish it from the non-metric units of the sh ...
. The six largest falls are listed below and five (except the 2013 Chelyabinsk meteorite
The Chelyabinsk meteorite (Russian: Челябинский метеорит, ''Chelyabinskii meteorit'') is the fragmented remains of the large Chelyabinsk meteor of 15 February 2013 which reached the ground after the meteor's passage through t ...
) occurred during the 20th century. Presumably, events of such magnitude may happen a few times per century but, especially if it occurred in remote areas, may have gone unreported.
For comparison, the largest finds are the 60-ton Hoba meteorite
The Hoba ( ) meteorite is named after the farm Hoba West, where it lies, not far from Grootfontein, in the Otjozondjupa Region of Namibia. It has been uncovered, but because of its large mass, has never been moved from where it fell. The main mass ...
, a 30.8-ton fragment ( ''Gancedo'') and a 28.8-ton fragment (''El Chaco'') of the Campo del Cielo
Campo del Cielo ("Field of Heaven" or "Field of the Sky" in English) refers to a group of iron meteorites and the area in Argentina where they were found. The site straddles the provinces of Chaco and Santiago del Estero, located north-northwes ...
, and a 30.9-ton fragment (''Ahnighito'') of the Cape York meteorite
The Cape York meteorite, also known as the Innaanganeq meteorite, is one of the largest known iron meteorites, classified as a medium octahedrite in chemical group IIIAB meteorites, IIIAB. In addition to many small fragments, at least eight large ...
.
Recent
As of 31 August 2021, there have been 90 found since 2010.
Others
On 18 August 1907 multiple newspapers reported that a meteor fall had occurred in Amaganzett, Long Island.
These have all been found between 1610 and 2010 and arranged alphabetically (mostly).
See also
* Glossary of meteoritics
This is a glossary of terms used in meteoritics, the science of meteorites.
#
* 2 Pallas – an asteroid from the asteroid belt and one of the likely parent bodies of the CR meteorites.
* 4 Vesta – second-largest asteroid in the asteroid bel ...
* Meteorite fall statistics
References
{{Modern impact events
Astronomical events of the Solar System
Light sources
Astronomy-related lists