Space rock that crashed on American house is older than Earth
The resident has since discovered tiny specks of space dust scattered in his living room, remnants of the celestial collision. UGA received 23 grams of the 50 grams recovered from the house. Under optical and electron microscopes, Harris identified it as a Low Metal (L) ordinary chondrite, a type of meteorite formed 4.56 billion years ago, predating the formation of Earth.The space rock likely originated in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter and can be traced to the breakup of a much larger asteroid around 470 million years ago.'This meteor has a long history before making it to McDonough,' Harris said. 'If given long enough, some asteroid fragments eventually intersect Earth's orbit, and that's what happened here.'While the meteoroid was travelling at cosmic speeds upon entering the atmosphere, Earth's air slowed it down considerably. Still, a rock 'double the size of a .50-caliber bullet,' travelling at over 1 kilometre per second, has tremendous force — enough to pierce a roof and leave floor dents while pulverizing part of itself into dust.Harris notes that while this meteor was small, it offers useful insights into how our planet might fare against much larger incoming objects.The findings on the McDonough Meteorite will be submitted to the Nomenclature Committee of the Meteoritical Society, and once approved, its name and classification will be published in the Meteoritical Bulletin. For now, the ancient stone is both a scientific treasure and a cosmic reminder that the universe is still sending pieces of its distant past crashing down to Earth.- Ends
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
India Today
13-08-2025
- India Today
Space rock that crashed on American house is older than Earth
A meteor from deep space that crashed over a house in Georgia has been officially named, and confirmed to be older than our McDonough Meteorite, which blazed across the Southeast US on June 26 before punching a hole in a Georgia home, has now been identified and given a permanent place in scientific history, thanks to researchers at the University of Georgia (UGA).advertisementThe meteor's dramatic arrival began when a brilliant daylight fireball streaked across the Atlanta sky, captivating witnesses across multiple states. In Henry County's McDonough neighbourhood, fragments of the rock tore through a homeowner's roof, HVAC duct, and floor, leaving behind a loud blast and vibrations 'like a close-range gunshot,' explained Scott Harris, UGA planetary geologist and impact expert. The resident has since discovered tiny specks of space dust scattered in his living room, remnants of the celestial collision. UGA received 23 grams of the 50 grams recovered from the house. Under optical and electron microscopes, Harris identified it as a Low Metal (L) ordinary chondrite, a type of meteorite formed 4.56 billion years ago, predating the formation of space rock likely originated in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter and can be traced to the breakup of a much larger asteroid around 470 million years ago.'This meteor has a long history before making it to McDonough,' Harris said. 'If given long enough, some asteroid fragments eventually intersect Earth's orbit, and that's what happened here.'While the meteoroid was travelling at cosmic speeds upon entering the atmosphere, Earth's air slowed it down considerably. Still, a rock 'double the size of a .50-caliber bullet,' travelling at over 1 kilometre per second, has tremendous force — enough to pierce a roof and leave floor dents while pulverizing part of itself into notes that while this meteor was small, it offers useful insights into how our planet might fare against much larger incoming findings on the McDonough Meteorite will be submitted to the Nomenclature Committee of the Meteoritical Society, and once approved, its name and classification will be published in the Meteoritical Bulletin. For now, the ancient stone is both a scientific treasure and a cosmic reminder that the universe is still sending pieces of its distant past crashing down to Earth.- Ends
Hindustan Times
11-08-2025
- Hindustan Times
Meteorite that crashed into Atlanta-based home is 20 million years older than Earth: Study
A piece of space rock that crashed into a home in Georgia's Atlanta earlier this year is believed to be over four and a half billion years old, according to researchers from the University of Georgia, People magazine reported. It has been named as 'McDonough Meteorite' in reference to the namesake city in Henry County. The space rock crash-landed in this region on June 26. McDonough Meteorite is older than Earth, reveals new study.(Unsplash) What to know? The fragments that tore through the residential roof were later provided to a UGA planetary geologist and impact expert to gain significant insights about their origin and classification. Scott Harris, a UGA Geology Department researcher, said the particular meteor, which entered the planet's atmosphere, has a "long history before it made it to the ground of McDonough, and in order to totally understand that, we actually have to examine what the rock is and determine what group of asteroids it belongs to'. While the pieces that fell were diminished in size, Harris stated that it was useful to understand how much the Earth could handle a much larger inbound space rock. Scientists noted that meteorites are capable of traveling faster than the speed of sound once they enter the atmosphere. 'When they encounter Earth, our atmosphere is very good at slowing them down. But you're talking about something that is double the size of a 50-caliber shell, going at least 1 kilometer per second. That's like running 10 football fields in one second," Harris said in a statement. Researchers said the McDonough Meteorite sounded like a "close-range gunshot" upon its landing. At the time, it crashed through the roof of a house and HVAC duct before denting the floor. Also read: How will life end on Earth? Study rules out meteorites and climate change They added that the owner of the property still gets to discover space dust in his living room. Harris suspects that the person heard three simultaneous sounds, which included a roof collision, one with a tiny cone of a sonic boom, and the last when it impacted the floor. All of this happened in the "same moment,' Harris said. 'There was enough energy when it hit the floor that it pulverized part of the material down to literal dust fragments," he added. For their analysis, the researchers at the University of Georgia were provided 23 of the 50 grams of space rock discovered at the property. They found out that the low-metal ordinary chondrite is likely 4.56 billion years old, which means it is 20 million years older than the Earth. Harris said it belongs to a "group of asteroids in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter that we now think we can tie to a breakup of a much larger asteroid about 470 million years ago'. FAQs When was the space rock given McDonough Meteorite name? This was done in a nod to the namesake city in Henry County, where it originally landed in June. How old is Earth? Earth is nearly 4.54 billion years old. Where does McDonough Meteorite belong? Researchers feel it comes from a "group of asteroids in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter".
NDTV
11-08-2025
- NDTV
Meteorite That Crashed Into A Home In The US Is Older Than Earth, Study Finds
A new study has found that a meteorite that crashed into a home in Atlanta, Georgia, is estimated to be 4.56 billion years old, older than our planet Earth. On June 26, a meteorite blazed through Georgia's skies in broad daylight before exploding, as per NASA. Researchers at the University of Georgia analysed fragments of the extraterrestrial rock to classify it and trace its origins. Their analysis revealed that the meteorite, which formed 4.56 billion years ago, is approximately 20 million years older than Earth, Science Alert reported. In a Friday news release, University of Georgia planetary geologist Scott Harris announced his findings after studying 23 grams of meteorite fragments, which pierced a man's home and dented the floor in McDonough, Henry County. Mr Harris examined the fragments under microscopes and determined they originated from a meteorite formed 4.56 billion years ago, predating Earth's estimated age of 4.54 billion years. "This particular meteor that entered the atmosphere has a long history before it made it to the ground of McDonough, and in order to totally understand that, we actually have to examine what the rock is and determine what group of asteroids it belongs to," Mr Harris said in the news release. "This is something that used to be expected once every few decades and not multiple times within 20 years. Modern technology, in addition to an attentive public, is going to help us recover more and more meteorites," Mr Harris added. The geologist aims to publish his research on asteroid composition and speed, which could enhance our understanding of potential asteroid threats. Meamwhile, the homeowner reported still finding traces of space dust around his property from the impact. Named the McDonough meteorite, the object is the 27th meteorite recovered in Georgia. In June, a bright fireball lit up the southeastern US sky in broad daylight, prompting reports to the American Meteor Society. NASA confirmed the meteor's entry into Earth's atmosphere coincided with the Bootids meteor shower, a minor celestial event occurring late June. Around the same time, a resident of Henry County, Georgia, reported a rock crashing through his ceiling, later identified as the McDonough Meteorite. The meteorite pierced the roof, ceiling, and flooring of the home, causing significant damage.
