New martian meteorite found in Antarctica

Status
Not open for further replies.
A

aerogi

Guest
Thanks for that link. But I have a (probably dumb) question, how on earth do scientists calculate it is probably after an impact on Mars about 11 million years ago? Is there proof or calculations? Really curious how they can estimate such things...
 
T

thalion

Guest
I think there are a few ways, but the main way to determine the meteorites' age is to microscopically examine the rock for traces of cosmic rays, which give an idea of how long the rock was exposed to the vacuum of space.
 
A

alexblackwell

Guest
<i>Thanks for that link. But I have a (probably dumb) question, how on earth do scientists calculate it is probably after an impact on Mars about 11 million years ago? Is there proof or calculations? Really curious how they can estimate such things...</i><br /><br />A good introduction to this particular subject can be found on LPI's (slightly dated) Mars Meteorite website, in particular the ALH 84001 Technical Discussions page.
 
R

robnissen

Guest
And in a related dumb question: Have there ever been any meteorite's positively identified as coming from any other planet than Mars?
 
A

alexblackwell

Guest
<i>And in a related dumb question: Have there ever been any meteorite's positively identified as coming from any other planet than Mars?</i><br /><br />Not "positively."
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Latest posts