Well, Mercury or a "Mercury-like body." It's unlike any other meteorite ever found on Earth.
Posted 03.29.2013 at 1:00 pm
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A Rock From Mercury
Stefan Ralew/sr-meteorites.de
Last year, a group of 35 meteorite samples was found in Morocco. One of them was this guy, a curiously green sample given the name NWA 7325. Further analysis indicates that its color isn't the only unusual thing about it--this meteorite isn't like any we've ever seen before.
NWA 7325 has a few very odd qualities. Its magnetic intensity is extremely low, for one thing, which has been an integral fact in figuring out just what the hell this thing is. Magnetic intensity is shared by rocks and the planet they originate from; Earth rocks have a magnetic intensity that can be tied to Earth, for example. This one's magnetic intensity is highly similar to that of Mercury, which was confirmed by Messenger, the spacecraft currently in orbit around the closest planet to the sun. There are some other clues; the meteorite is also very low in iron, like the planet, and it doesn't have any of the chemical signifiers that would identify it as, say, a Martian rock.
It's the first meteorite to be identified as coming from Mercury, or (as is possible, though not likely) a Mercury-like body. It's estimated that this meteorite (and the others found with it) are about 4.65 billion years old.
[via Space.com]
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Yikes, I hope this is not a type of cryptonite against Green Latern!
Hmm, that made no sense at all. What does kryptonite (note the spelling) have to do with Green Lantern?
1. Green Lantern and cryptonite, (kryptonite), are both creations of DC comics.
2. Both creations are an integral part of DC plots.
3. And both are commonly used in The Justice League of America, Superman and Green Lantern comics.
4. Both originated on Earth.
I could go on but...
a 'type' of kryptonite...... sheesh and because it comes from space and it is green, OYE!
So then what's the water content? Understandably, if we have no other specimen, then we can't draw an conclusions as to what is normal or expected, but how does it compare to one of the drier Mars meteorites?
Also, they say it's low in iron, but that's it. No other indication of just what this thing is. I checked the source article, but nothing there either.
It would have needed to escape the Mercury gravity. Didn't they think of that? They estimate it's age according to what they already believed. It's more impressive than saying the truth on both points They don't know, but that wouldn't secure there funding. At least they didn't claim it showed life on the planet—yet.
I know this is a scientific discussion and my comment is a bit off topic, but I would have liked to hear what such a rock would be worth if it were up for sale. Martian and lunar rocks sell for insane amounts, so if this is that much rarer, it must be incredibly expensive.
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@ Anyicon .. you're thinking of YELLOW 'Orum' , the yellow rock that projects fear and can depower a green lantern ring.
totally wrong colour.. what is this amature hour?
@ Playborg .. #3 & #4 tsk tsk..
... the green lantern rings and [malitia] core didn't originate on earth at all. They were created by the guardians who's council lives on Oa. The rings are powered by energy from a living life form that lives within the central lantern battery on Oa. AND as I'll chalk the ["commonly used in"] superman comic remark to misnomer that all DC comics somehow involve superman in every publication (that would get creatively exhausting fast) Green lantern core members who's origins are Earth (Hal Jordan, Jon Stewart, Kyle Rayner & Guy Gardner), no one member is commonly employed as a member in the JLA. As the lanterns have a responsiblity to guarding Oa, entire sectors of space (earth is in sector 2814) & other missions no one core member's character story allows them to attend to trivial earth matters indefinitely. Currently there isn't even ANY green lanterns on the JLA team roster at all.
.. in other words.. please DON'T "go on" .. lease it at that his comment made absolutely no sense at all
redman.ca,
Ah, thank you for the clarification. Green Latern and the world is safe now...... nice!
It would have had to be a really energetic or possibly glancing impact by a fast body to send the rock out this far to hit earth.
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