The largest intact Martian rock on Earth is now on display for good at the Maine Mineral & Gem Museum. This meteorite is identified as Taoudenni 002.
As indicated in a NewsNation report, weighing 32-pound rock, this object now on display is the second meteorite retrieved near a dessert salt-mining center known as Taoudenni, Mali, 400 miles north of Timbuktu.
The museum press release stated that the stone's measurement is roughly nine inches in width, 10 inches in length, and 6.5 inches in height. Additionally, this meteorite is mainly composed of pyroxene, olivine, and maskekynite.
According to scientists at NASA, the meteorite's origin can be traced to Mars due to the tiny bubbles found in the rock that matched the Red Planet's atmosphere as determined by the Viking probes of NASA from the mid-1990s.
The Taoudenni 002
The largest Mars rock was acquired in April this year by Daryll Pitt, a meteor dealer. Then, it was verified by the Institute of Meteoritics director Dr. Carl Agee, also one of the most renowned classification experts of Mars meteorites in the world.
Describing the Martian rock, Pitt said this is a "spectacular specimen of Mars," not to mention the perfect accompaniment to display just across the room, the largest identified piece of the Moon, instead of the Moon itself.
The meteorite is currently a part of the museum's renowned collection of interstellar rocks, with over 6,000 from Mars, the moon, and the asteroid belt.
Meanwhile, according to NASA, the Zagami meteorite was once believed to be the largest Mars rock found, weighing over 40 pounds, although it has been cut into tinier pieces.
According to a NASA report, Zagami fell in 1962 around 0.75 miles from Zagami Rock, Katsina Province, Nigeria. In the mid-1980s, the main mass with the Geological Survey of Nigeria in Kaduna.
In the late 1980s meteorite dealer, Robert Haag was able to obtain a large piece of Zagami. Since then, as mentioned, the whole specimen has seemingly been cut up into small pieces and distributed.
Open to the Public Today
The museum said the Martian rock resulted from an asteroid effect on the surface of the Red Planet that.
The museum said the rock was the result of an asteroid impact on the surface of Mars that expelled material into an "Earth-crossing orbit in space."
There are below 500 pounds of the Martian rock known to be present on this Planet, said the museum. The Bethel, Maine museum said it would include the meteorite when it opens to the public on Sept. 1
It also said it planned to hold a reception with limited capacity to celebrate the rock's acquisition. In relation to this, two scientists from NASA were expected to attend the event.
Located on Main Street in Bethel, Maine, Maine Mineral & Gem Museum is open daily except for Tuesdays. Encompassing 15,000 square feet and holding 17 interactive displays and a laboratory, this museum is celebrating the mining legacy of Maine, on top of an internationally renowned collection of meteorites with more of the Moon, compared to the globe's every natural history museum, combined.
Report about the Earth's largest Martian rock on display in Maine is shown on TVC News Nigeria' YouTube video below:
Check out more news and information on Mars in Science Times.
