Earth's biggest meteor is huge 60 tonne space rock in Namibia that's never been moved


10-01-2022 12:22 PM

Ammon News - The Hoba meteorite was first discovered by an unsuspecting farmer in 1920 and hasn't budged since - scientists have theorised that the object first hit Earth around 80,000 years ago.

The largest meteor to hit Earth that has ever been found is a colossal space rock, known as the Hoba meteorite.

Weighing in at an incredible 60 tonnes, the meteorite is situated in the Otjozondjupa region of Namibia, and is named after Hoba West, the farm where it was discovered.

The huge object has never once been moved since a farmer first came across it in 1920.

As the farmer - Jacobus Hermanus Brits - was plowing his field, his plow suddenly screeched to a halt.

When he dug into the soil, he found a large piece of metal.

Soon after, the object was excavated and identified as a meteorite, quickly attracting the attention of scientists.

It is thought that the Hoba meteorite fell to the Earth around 80,000 years ago - but it has caused wide speculation over the years on why there is no crater surrounding the object.

According to Geology.com, the lack of a crater suggests that it fell to Earth at a lower rate of speed than expected, which some scientists believe was a result of the flat shape of the object.

In 1955, in a bid to stop people from vandalising the object, the Hoba meteorite was declared as a national monument of Namibia.

23 years later, the owner of the farm donated the meteorite and the place where it lies to the state for "educational purposes".

Later that year, in 1987, a tourist centre was opened at the site, and has been visited by thousands of people every year to this day.

In other geology-related news, the hazy cube-like object playfully dubbed as a "mystery hut" on the moon has turned out to be a rock.

Last month, China's Yutu-2 rover made the discovery of the mysterious object on the far side of the moon, but it would take months for the rover to get close enough to find out what it was.

But Chinese scientists developed new strategies for the rover to travel across the moon's surface and reach the object faster - and the "mystery hut" is sadly nothing more than a regular old rock.

The cube appeared to be as tall as the Arc de Triomphe in the distance, the Chinese blog Our Space notes.

But when approached by the rover, it turned out to be very short, and "the drivers couldn't help but feel a little disappointed".

Nevertheless, the rock has been given the nickname "Jade Rabbit" thanks to the fragments of rock surrounding it, which look like the leftovers from a rabbit's carrot feast.

*dailystar




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