Meteorites

A meteorite is a solid piece of debris from an object, such as a comet, asteroid, or meteoroid, that originates in outer space and survives its passage through the atmosphere to reach the surface of a planet or moon.

When the original object enters the atmosphere, various factors such as friction, pressure, and chemical interactions with the atmospheric gases cause it to heat up and radiate energy. It then becomes a meteor and forms a fireball, also known as a shooting star; astronomers call the brightest examples "bolides".

Once it settles on the larger body's surface, the meteor becomes a meteorite.

Among the main external signs of a meteorite, it is worth noting:

• melting bark;

• regmaglypts;
• magnetism.

The rarest type of meteorites is stone-iron. Of the total number, these celestial bodies make up only 2%.

Stone-iron meteorite.

Stony-iron meteorites are a mixture of rocks (silicate minerals) and metals (iron-nickel alloy). Very few stony-iron meteorites have been found on Earth compared to stony meteorites and iron meteorites.