A Rare Aubrite Meteor That Crashed In Gujarat Might Give Information On Planet Evolution

Aubrite meteor that crashed in Gujarat might give information on planet evolution
This unusual element shared and was distinct from the very reducing circumstances on Mercury’s surface

Web Desk of India Today: Researchers have determined that a meteorite that landed in two villages in Gujarat is an unique aubrite that formed in our solar system from an incredibly reduced differentiated parent material.

What intrigues them is that this uncommon element has comparable and unique properties to strongly reducing circumstances on the surface of planet Mercury, and it may prove useful in understanding planetary processes in the future. The rare aubrite was last discovered in India in 1852 near Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh.According to the findings published in the journal Current Science, the meteorite shards surfaced as regolith and were comparable in both sites, suggesting that they were likely part of a single meteorite mass before breaking up during their transit through the Earth’s atmosphere.

WHERE DID THE METEORITE TURN UP
The meteors landed near the villages of Rantila and Ravel in the Diyodar taluka of Gujarat’s Banaskantha district. The shards, dubbed the Diyodar meteorite, plummeted over India on August 17, 2022, amid soft, clayey agricultural ground. While people did not see any trace, they did hear a tremendous boom, similar to a jet plane passing overhead.

While one of the parts collided with a neem tree limb and fractured into smaller pieces, the other large chunk collided with a porch in Ravel village. Villagers then gathered the big pieces, which weighed roughly 200 grammes and were given over to experts from the Physical Research Laboratory.

Read Also: Tax raids on BBC News offices in India for the 2nd day.

The villagers claimed that the meteorite shards had a strong, pungent odour comparable to sulphur gas. The trajectory analysis also revealed that there might be other shards between and away from these settlements along the meteorite’s route.

WHAT DID SCIENTISTS DISCOVER?
Researchers employed reflectance spectroscopy to examine the meteor fragments and discovered magnesium-rich pyroxene. To undertake chemical research, the scientists polished a few tiny pieces (0.5-1.5 cm) from the bigger portion of the Diyodar meteorite.

The investigation found that the meteorite is a rare, one-of-a-kind specimen of aubrite, a type of uncommon achondrite meteorite. Aubrites, according to Science Direct, contain calcium, chromium, manganese, titanium, and sodium sulphides, as well as silicon-bearing FeNi metal. They are comparable to enstatite chondrites in their extremely reduced character, peculiar mineralogy, and oxygen-isotopic composition.

“The Indian subcontinent has a remarkable record of meteorite falls. However, this is just the second documented aubrite fall in India, following the Bustee fall in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, in 1852 “According to the researchers’ article.