How much are the rarest meteorites and where can you buy them?

According to NASA aerospace agency48.5 tons of meteorites fall on the surface of our planet every year. Once in the atmosphere, they start to burn and eventually get lost in forests and other uninhabited places. However, sometimes these space stones fall on the territory of cities and people find them. The composition and origin of meteorites is always different - it so happens that precious metals and beautiful minerals are inside the stones. These meteorites are highly sought after by collectors, so they are often offered for sale at very high prices. Recently, the auction house Christie's put up for sale 70 rare meteorites from Mars, the Moon and other celestial bodies. Among the lots there are very interesting exhibits that amaze with their composition and beauty. Let's take a look at their photos and find out what they are made of?

The photo shows a beautiful fucan meteorite. One of its fragments can be bought at the auction

Content

• 1 Where to buy a meteorite?
• 2 The most expensive meteorites
  • 2.1 Large lunar meteorite
  • 2.2 Meteorite Gibeon
  • 2.3 Stone meteorite with unusual texture
  • 2.4 A meteorite that did not fall to Earth
  • 2.5 Fukang Meteorite Fragment

Where to buy a meteorite?

An auction where you can buy a meteorite,called Deep Impact: Martian, Lunar and Other Rare Meteorites. It will last until February 23, so those who want to buy a rare meteorite need to hurry up. The minimum price for a meteorite at auction is $ 250, while the most expensive lot can cost $ 350,000. There are quite a lot of people who want to buy an expensive stone from space, because many of them include precious stones. And many are attracted by the fact that once upon a time a meteorite was a part of distant planets, where not a single person has set foot.

"Falling stars" in the sky are meteorites

It goes without saying that the auction takes place inonline mode. But potential buyers from New York can have a look at the lots with their own eyes by appointment. Apparently, the stones will be sent to buyers by mail. Whether there are residents of Russia among the buyers is unknown. Given the high cost of the meteorites for sale, there are not so many buyers.

Christie's auction interface

But you can buy a meteorite not only at an auction.On the territory of Russia, stones from space are also often found and many of them are put up for sale in special online stores or sites like Avito. You just have to search the Internet and you will find everything. The cost of most Russian meteorites does not exceed 10,000 rubles. The price of a meteorite, as we have already found out, strictly depends on its composition and origin.

But it's important to be careful because there are a lot of scammers on the internet

More details about what kind of meteorites are and what their cost depends on, I wrote in this article. Now let's talk about the most interesting meteorites from the auction.

The most expensive meteorites

The most expensive meteorite exhibited onauction, was discovered in the Sahara Desert in December 2019. According to researchers, it consists of many minerals such as anorthite, olivine and augite. It is believed that this stone flew off the surface of the Moon after the fall of the asteroid. The mass of the lunar meteorite is 40 kilograms. The organizers of the auction claim that this is the second largest fragment of the moon that has ever appeared on Earth. Earlier, large moonstones arrived on our planet together with the crew of the Apollo space missions. But even they could not compare in size with this exhibit. Before the exhibition, the front surface of the meteorite was polished. It is estimated at $ 350,000.

Lunar meteorite worth $ 350,000

Meteorite Gibeon

In 1836 on the territory of Africa was discoveredan iron meteorite, which was given the name Gibeon. It is believed to have fallen to Earth about 500,000 years ago. And this despite the fact that the age of the meteorite is estimated at 4.6 billion years. It was originally used by representatives of the African Nama tribe for the manufacture of tools. A total of 26 tons of fragments of this meteorite were found. One of them was posted at the Christie's auction. Its cost is estimated at $ 260,000.

Meteorite Gibeon

Stone meteorite with unusual texture

This exhibit was also found in the Sahara Desert.As a rule, 99% of meteorites make a lot of somersaults during the fall. But this lot obviously flew more calmly, which could be due to the "ideal" distribution of its mass. Thanks to this, the surface of the meteorite was covered with a smooth texture. The organizers of the auction said that the shape of such meteorites inspired scientists to develop many spacecraft that are forced to pass through the earth's atmosphere. The specimen is very rare, so its cost is $ 80,000.

Rare meteorite with "perfect" mass distribution

A meteorite that did not fall to Earth

In July 2014, a hugea meteorite, the roar of which was heard at a distance of up to 200 kilometers from the scene. Researchers rushed to look for him, but could not find him. But a day later, one boy noticed that one tree was casting too much shadow. It turned out that the same meteorite was stuck on its branches. If the fate that this shiny stone fell to the Earth, but did not touch its surface, this is a very rare exhibit. That is why it was valued at $ 25,000.

A meteorite that fell to Earth, but did not touch its surface

Fukang Meteorite Fragment

In 2000, a beautifulFukan meteorite. It consists of an iron-stone mixture, which is not very typical for meteorites. Inside the meteorite are crystals of peridot and olivine, which are considered precious. Fragments of the Fukan meteorite are hunted by many collectors and one of them can be purchased at the auction. The price is relatively low at $ 4,500.

Fukang is one of the most beautiful meteorites in the world

As part of some fallen on our planetmeteorites sometimes contain elements unknown to science. In 2019, my colleague Lyubov Sokovikova wrote about one of such cases. Follow this link and read the details.