Murchison Meteorite

MURCHISON

723 gram oriented individual

The murchison carbonaceous chondrite (type II, CM2) fell in Victoria Australia September 28, 1969. A shower of stones weighing over 100kg fell over an area of over 5 square miles. This very rare meteorite surprised scientists when it was discovered that Murchison contained amino acids which are not present on Earth. Amino acids are "the building blocks of life" and some theorize that life on Earth was "seeded" by meteorites. The Murchison meteorite contains about 12% water and is considered by many to be of cometary origin.

This incredible specimen was picked up soon after the fall. It is oriented with a great roll-over rim in thick fusion crust on the back. It still has grass imbedded in the surface where it hit the ground, breaking into two pieces upon impact. The two pieces fit together perfectly and the interior of both pieces is pristine. It has been in a private collection since April 1971 and was purchased by me from that collection September 12, 2003.
CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE:

First photo is a view looking straight down at the leading edge of the meteorite. Second photo is the back. Third photo is a view from the top showing the two pieces separated.

Side views of the meteorite.

Close-up views of some of the roll-over rim are in the first two photos. The third photo shows rainbow affect in an area of the fusion crust on the back side.

These photos show the pristine interior of the two pieces when separated. The large piece in the first photo weighs 501 grams and the other piece weighs 222 grams.

Close-up photos of the grass still imbeded in the surface of the meteorite. This specimen looks absolutely undisturbed from the day that it was picked up. It is so pristine, that I would guess that it was picked up very soon after the fall. There is no evidence on the surface to suggest otherwise.

Click Here for Additional Larger photos from all angles.

The two labels below came with the meteorite when it was originally purchased in 1971 and accompany the meteorite. I have recently been informed that these are hand written Harvey Nininger labels and the "H. H" initials are his. I have not been able to independently verify this new information.

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