ALLENDE METEORITE - END PIECE CONTAINS THE OLDEST MATTER THAT CAN BE TOUCHED - TRUE "STARDUST". ...

Description

ALLENDE METEORITE - END PIECE CONTAINS THE OLDEST MATTER THAT CAN BE TOUCHED - TRUE "STARDUST"
Carbonaceous-CV3
Chihuahua, Mexico
Allende, the most studied meteorite in the world, contains interstellar particles that are believed to have formed during an explosion of a super nova prior to the formation of our solar system. The white calcium-aluminum inclusions (CAIs) seen here are among the earliest materials to have condensed out of the hot nebular gasses that initiated the formation of the planets. In effect, the CAIs are aggregates of primitive "stardust"- the oldest matter mankind can ever touch -and Allende is among the few meteorites to contain such particles. This specimen was part of the meteorite shower that descended on Chihuahua, Mexico on February 8, 1969. Its light charcoal matrix is loaded with CAIs, spherical chondrules and myriad other inclusions. The reverse is a naturally fractured, non-fusion encrusted surface. This is a superb example of what is inarguably one of the most scientifically important meteorite showers in history: more than one hundred scientific papers have been devoted to the study of Allende. 84 x 54 x 5 mm (3.3 x 2.1 x 0.2 inches) and 51.9 grams.

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