NASA confirms a meteorite fell in New England. You could earn $25,000 for finding a piece. (2024)
A fireball that caused loud sonic booms and even lit up the daytime sky on Saturday was the firstradar-observed meteorite fall seen in Maine, NASA confirmed.
“Booming” noises were heard near Calais, Maine, shortly after the fireball was seen moving through the sky. This apparent meteorite fall occurred at 11:56 a.m. local time, NASA said.
NASA’s radar was able to observe the event for nearly five minutes and calculated fallen meteorite masses from 1.59-322 grams, or less than a pound, “although larger masses may have fallen.”
Shawn Laatsch, the director of the Versant Power Astronomy Center at the University of Maine in Orono, toldthe Machias Valley News Observer that he speculates the fireball was maybe a larger kind of meteor calleda bolidebecausethose are often visible during the daytime.
“If it’s visible in the daytime, it’s usually a large meteor that hits that atmosphere and lights up,"Laatsch toldthe Observer. "The different colors you see depend on what it was made up of."
Some described the meteorite’s fall as a “red flare” or like a “firework,” according to the Machias paper.
This meteorite fall is recorded in American Meteor Society eyewitness reports as number 2002 for the year 2023, according to NASA.
Camille Fine is a trending visual producer on USA TODAY's NOW team.
You could earn $25,000 for finding a piece. A fireball
fireball
A superbolide is a bolide that reaches an apparent magnitude of −17 or brighter, which is roughly 100 times brighter than the full moon. Recent examples of superbolides include the Sutter's Mill meteorite in California and the Chelyabinsk meteor in Russia.
that caused loud sonic booms and even lit up the daytime sky on Saturday was the first radar-observed meteorite fall
meteorite fall
A meteorite fall, also called an observed fall, is a meteorite collected after its fall from outer space was 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.
News of a likely meteorite strike prompted the Maine Mineral and Gem Museum – located in the downtown area of rural Bethel, Maine, and home to one of the world's most valuable meteorite collections – to offer a $25,000 reward for a 1-kilogram (2.2-pound) sample.
The Maine Mineral and Gem Museum is offering a $25,000 reward for a hunk of the space rock that came hurtling to Earth over the weekend. The meteorite triggered a sonic boom and caused a fireball so bright it was visible in broad daylight from parts of Canada and Maine.
The $25,000 reward is for the first meteorite piece found that weighs 2.2 pounds (1 kilogram) or more. However, he said the museum would be willing to pay for any specimen “irrespective of its size.” “Finding meteorites in woods of Maine. It's not the simplest of the environments,” Pitt said.
We purchase individual meteorite specimens, entire collections, and also offer appraisal services. If you think you have found a meteorite, please start by reading our Guide to Meteorite Identification HERE. We also offer consignment services for important specimens, for a modest fee.
Stone meteorites are worth between $2.00 and $20 per gram but could exceed $1,000 per gram. That means a one pound iron meteorite could be worth more than $2,000 while a one pound stone meteorite could get you $9,000. So how do you know if it's a meteorite?
Each person would earn roughly several billion dollars if NASA were to retrieve this asteroid and divide it among the population. 16 Psyche is a 140-mile-wide (226-kilometer-wide) asteroid. The word asteroid brings to mind a structure in everyone's mind: a minor planet or a space rock of the inner solar system.
If we could get our hands on such a massive piece of space, it would be worth more than the combined global economy. While the exact economic value of Psyche remains a mystery, it's estimated value spans somewhere between $10 quintillion and $700 quintillion.
And if you buy a meteorite from someone who found it on their land, you legally own it too. Things get more complicated if you find the meteorite on public lands. You might be allowed to keep it if the land is overseen by the Bureau of Land Management, but there are several stipulations.
But you don't need to be a professional to partake… Keep your eyes peeled, because just like the stay-at-home mom in Lotus, California, anyone can find a meteorite. And if you find one, it could easily be worth $20,000 or more!
The reported gold contents of meteorites range from 0.0003 to 8.74 parts per million. Gold is siderophilic, and the greatest amounts in meteorites are in the iron phases. Estimates of the gold content of the earth's crust are in the range ~f 0.001 to 0.006 parts per million.
Meteorites have significant financial value to collectors and scientific value to researchers. Meteorite values can range from a few dollars to hundreds of thousands of dollars.
At the high end of the pricing scale are unusual types such as the diogenite Tatahouine (fell June 27, 1931, Foum Tatahouine, Tunisia). A prime specimen will easily fetch $50/gram while rare examples of lunar and Martian meteorites may sell for $1,000/gram or more — almost forty times the current price of gold!
You may try contacting the Geological Survey of your state, a local college or university or college or a local natural history museum. In addition, there are a few commercial firms that will charge a fee for examining and identifying suspected meteorites.
Introduction: My name is Greg Kuvalis, I am a witty, spotless, beautiful, charming, delightful, thankful, beautiful person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
We notice you're using an ad blocker
Without advertising income, we can't keep making this site awesome for you.
