# Could this be a meteorite? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 29, 2022, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-this-be-a-meteorite/963693 "2022-04-29T20:11:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![FloatyGimpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/floatygimpy/32/7750_2.png) [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2022, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-this-be-a-meteorite/963693/1 "2022-04-29T20:11:03Z")
My brother has had this rock for years. He found it in the Okanagan in the interior of BC. It attracts a magnet and feels heavy for its size. [![Imgur](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52038595903_e565106c21_b.jpg "IMG\_2475") ](https://www.flickr.com/photos/56821557@N06/52038595903/in/dateposted-public/) [![Imgur](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52038792444_a2fa017c3c_b.jpg "IMG\_2476") ](https://www.flickr.com/photos/56821557@N06/52038792444/in/dateposted-public/) [![Imgur](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52037502942_22c9f05fa7_b.jpg "IMG\_2477") ](https://www.flickr.com/photos/56821557@N06/52037502942/in/dateposted-public/) ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2022, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-this-be-a-meteorite/963693/2 "2022-04-29T20:45:31Z")
Yes, and those orange blotches are samples of living alien highly intelligent fungus. You and your brother have without question been colonized by now and the spores are dormant in you both, waiting for word of the invasion when the fungus will take control and force your meat puppet sacks to do its bidding. Two men wearing dark suits and sunglasses will be knocking on your door soon-- do what they say. Seriously, I found this website, which says a meteorite has these qualities: > **Density** : Meteorites are usually quite heavy for their size, since they contain metallic iron and dense minerals. Check! > **Magnetic** : Since most meteorites contain metallic iron, a magnet will often stick to them. For “stony” meteorites, a magnet might not stick, but if you hang the magnet by a string, it will be attracted. Check! > **Unusual shape** : iron-nickel meteorites are rarely rounded. Instead, they have an irregular shape with unusual pits like finger prints in their surface called “regmaglypts.” hmmm…maybe too smooth and rounded…? > **Fusion crust** : stony meteorites typically have a thin crust on their surface where it melted as it passed through the atmosphere. ?? Hard to tell from a photo. > **[I think I found a meteorite. How can I tell for sure? | U.S. Geological Survey](https://www.usgs.gov/faqs/i-think-i-found-a-meteorite-how-can-i-tell-sure)** > > Meteorites are fragments of rock or metal that fall to Earth from space. They are very rare, but many people find unusual rocks or pieces of metal and wonder if they might have found a meteorite. The USGS doesn't verify meteorites, but they... ---
**Author:** ![FloatyGimpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/floatygimpy/32/7750_2.png) [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2022, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-this-be-a-meteorite/963693/3 "2022-04-29T20:47:35Z")
It definitely has a crust and we scraped a little off to see the inside and it’s silver inside. Now we’re doing a streak test. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2022, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-this-be-a-meteorite/963693/4 "2022-04-29T21:43:33Z")
Don’t get too familiar with it… 🙂 > **[Creepshow | "The Lonesome Death of Jordy Verrill"](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creepshow#%22The_Lonesome_Death_of_Jordy_Verrill%22)** > > Jordy Verrill, a comedic and dim-witted backwoods yokel, watches as a meteorite crash lands on his farm. Observing the crash site, Jordy gets his fingers burned when he tries to touch the meteorite. In a fantasy sequence, Jordy imagines selling the meteorite to the local college's "Department of Meteors", hoping that the sale will provide enough money to pay off a $200 bank loan. Taking precautions, he douses the meteorite with a bucket of water, causing it to crack open and spill a glowing blue ... More seriously, from your description and the photos, it does appear to be one. It would be interesting to know the exact location of the find, and if other rocks found there have the same characteristics - if not, then it is from somewhere else (glacial erratic, space?), and if so, then perhaps it’s just a chunk of local rock (not from space). The rounded shape lends itself to have been tossed around in a river at some point - it could be a cobble. ---
**Author:** ![FloatyGimpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/floatygimpy/32/7750_2.png) [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2022, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-this-be-a-meteorite/963693/5 "2022-04-29T21:57:46Z")
He found it in the Okanagan desert when he was digging for jasper. The results of the streak test are the crusty outside leaves a mark and the interior does not. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2022, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-this-be-a-meteorite/963693/6 "2022-04-30T00:22:55Z")
> [@solost](#): > > Yes, and those orange blotches are samples of living alien highly intelligent fungus. You and your brother have without question been colonized by now and the spores are dormant in you both, waiting for word of the invasion when the fungus will take control and force your meat puppet sacks to do its bidding. Two men wearing dark suits and sunglasses will be knocking on your door soon-- do what they say. Don’t list to @solost who is just trying to frighten you into giving or selling the asteroid from him on the cheap. You should smelt it down, carbonize it using my proprietary process, and forge it into a shield that defies physical laws. My consulting fee for process metallurgy knowledge is a bargain at $50,000, payable by cashier’s check or in specie. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2022, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-this-be-a-meteorite/963693/7 "2022-04-30T01:40:47Z")
> [@FloatyGimpy](#): > > He found it in the Okanagan desert when he was digging for jasper. The results of the streak test are the crusty outside leaves a mark and the interior does not. Derserts _are_ the best place to look for meteorites. But there is nothing about that one that suggests that it is one. A thin black coating on a desert rock doesn’t really help identify it: > **[Desert varnish](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desert_varnish)** > > Desert varnish or rock varnish is an orange-yellow to black coating found on exposed rock surfaces in arid environments. Desert varnish is approximately one micrometer thick and exhibits nanometer-scale layering. Rock rust and desert patina are other terms which are also used for the condition, but less often. > Desert varnish forms only on physically stable rock surfaces that are no longer subject to frequent precipitation, fracturing or wind abrasion. The varnish is primarily composed of particl... Take a look at this site: [https://sites.wustl.edu/meteoritesite/items/some-meteorite-realities/](https://sites.wustl.edu/meteoritesite/items/some-meteorite-realities/) ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2022, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-this-be-a-meteorite/963693/8 "2022-05-01T02:52:38Z")
As always, xkcd has it covered. > **[Meteorite Identification](https://xkcd.com/1723/)** > > Click for an actual flowchart for identifying a meteorite. My favorite part is how 'Did someone see it fall? -\> Yes' points to 'NOT A METEORITE.' This is not a mistake. The link referred to is [https://sites.wustl.edu/meteoritesite/](https://sites.wustl.edu/meteoritesite/) ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2022, 9:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-this-be-a-meteorite/963693/9 "2022-05-01T09:20:44Z")
It doesn’t look like a meteorite to me. Could just be ironstone, which checks the “heavy”, “silvery” and “attracts magnet” boxes, depending on exact composition. Although no streak is a bit of a mark against. Are you willing to lop off a bit and then post a closer photo of the silvery interior? That should clear it up very quickly. ---
**Author:** ![FloatyGimpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/floatygimpy/32/7750_2.png) [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2022, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-this-be-a-meteorite/963693/10 "2022-05-01T12:15:03Z")
I’m home now and it’s at my brother’s so I don’t have access to it right now. Ironstone seems like a possibility. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2022, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-this-be-a-meteorite/963693/11 "2022-05-01T13:32:35Z")
If you crack it open and there’s blobby stuff inside (check with your fingers) then it’s likely of extraterrestrial origin. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2022, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-this-be-a-meteorite/963693/12 "2022-05-01T14:21:37Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > Are you willing to lop off a bit and then post a closer photo of the silvery interior? That should clear it up very quickly. Etching the cut surface with nitric acid or ferric chloride to bring out the [Widmanstätten patterns](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Widmanst%C3%A4tten_pattern) would be the clincher. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2022, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-this-be-a-meteorite/963693/13 "2022-05-01T15:38:34Z")
Not all iron meteorites will display those lamellae, though. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2022, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-this-be-a-meteorite/963693/14 "2022-05-02T00:15:10Z")
Specifically, ataxites. > **[Ataxite](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ataxite)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > Ataxites (from Greek meaning "without structure") are a structural class of iron meteorites with a high nickel content and show no Widmanstätten patterns upon etching. > Ataxites are composed mainly of meteoric iron, a native metal found in meteorites that consists of the mineral taenite with minor amounts of plessite, troilite, and microscopic lamellae of kamacite. Ataxites are the most nickel-rich meteorites known; they usually contain over 18% n... ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2022, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-this-be-a-meteorite/963693/15 "2022-05-02T00:38:38Z")
> [@DesertDog](#): > > My favorite part is how ‘Did someone see it fall? → Yes’ points to ‘NOT A METEORITE.’ This is not a mistake. (Quote from XKCD, not DesertDog.) It definitely happens. Sometimes “meteorites” really do crash through houses and are bits of debris launched out by woodchippers and other sorts of heavy machinery capable of launching things. They get featured on the local news. Sometimes they ask a meteorologist to identify it (a meteorologist, of course, is no more likely to know anything about meteorites than the random person on the street). Other times they ask a local astronomer or geologist. Astronomers and geologists may be _somewhat_ more likely to have actually handled meteorites, but not really all that much. Meanwhile all the meteoriticists, dealers, and collectors out there are yelling at their TV screens because it is very obviously not a meteorite. (Reporting that to them will gain you nothing, because respected local astronomer said that it was.) [https://sites.wustl.edu/meteoritesite/items/thud/](https://sites.wustl.edu/meteoritesite/items/thud/) ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2022, 7:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-this-be-a-meteorite/963693/16 "2022-05-02T07:49:33Z")
Rather like consulting a physicist instead of a physician when you’re feeling unwell. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2022, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-this-be-a-meteorite/963693/17 "2022-05-03T17:27:59Z")
So here is what a really fresh meteorite looks like: > **[Astro Bob: Booming fireball drops meteorites near Natchez](https://www.duluthnewstribune.com/lifestyle/astro-bob/astro-bob-booming-fireball-drops-meteorites-near-natchez)** > > Hunters find meteorites after a brilliant fireball streaked over Mississippi on April 27. ---
**Author:** ![FloatyGimpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/floatygimpy/32/7750_2.png) [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2022, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-this-be-a-meteorite/963693/18 "2022-05-03T18:05:34Z")
Thanks for posting that - so interesting!