Amateur astronomers search for a “precious” meteorite the size of an apricot that fell in France

Amateur astronomers in France are engaged in a strange “hunt” in recent days Meteor, Trying to find a small celestial body the size of an apricot that fell in the southwest of the country.

Weighing in at about 150 grams, the rock object was captured by cameras at an astronomical center in Murarox as it sank into the Earth’s atmosphere. The meteorite struck Earth at exactly 10:43 a.m. Saturday night, near Iquilan, within a 100-kilometer radius of Portico.

The meteor search is part of the Viji-Seal project, which captures the night sky with a hundred cameras, locating fallen celestial bodies in France. Each year, ten such extraterrestrial objects are retrieved by volunteers who search large areas “to pieces” and voluntarily provide their services to the FRIPON network (recovery network). Burning fireballs And planetary observation).

“Meteors are the ‘remnants’ of the solar system, which have an undisclosed ‘privilege’ to the elements (clothing),” explains Michael Wilmart of the A Seal Over (Open Skies) Educational Organization, which manages Murax’s laboratory.

“A new meteorite like the one that fell a few days ago has not been altered by Earth’s environment, so it contains valuable information for scientists,” he said.

The investigation is ongoing and calls for help have been posted on social media and posters, which were posted on the walls in areas where the “space apron” might have fallen. However, Wilmart agrees that the chances of finding a celestial body are slim.

“It’s like looking for a ‘flea in the straw’. On the side of the road, in the gardens, we really trust people. Fall In this rock we are eagerly looking for. “

With information from the Guardian