The moon is filled with craters due to impacts caused by asteriods. And while thousands of these meteorites hit the earth each year, most of them go unnoticed due to their small size. Very rarely does a piece of the moon weighing 13.5 kg make it to Earth. But when it does, it is sold for millions!
Rare Lunar Meteorite Put on Sale for Rs 18 Crore
Known as the NWA 12691, the rare lunar meteorite, considered as the fifth largest piece of the moon ever found on earth has gone on sale this week at a London auction house called Christie’s for $2.5 million or 18 crores.
According to reports, this particular meteorite was part of a large meteorite shower which fell near the Western Saharan, Algerian and Mauritanian borders in Jan 2017. About 30 lunar meteorites were found from this shower, weighing a total of 103.77 kg.
As per Christie’s, the rock was probably knocked off the moon’s surface by a collision with an asteroid or a comet. It then traveled at least 239,000 miles through space before falling on the Earth.
Apart from its impressive size, the meteorite is packed with rare lunar minerals and gases, some of which are still unknown on Earth.
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A Little About Moon Rocks
Moon rocks rank as one of the rarest substances on earth. As per Christie’s, we currently have less than 650 kgs of it on earth.
Between 1969 and 1972, NASA’s six Apollo missions brought back 382 kilograms of Moon rock. However, the biggest ever Moon rock brought back to Earth by Apollo astronauts is the one called ‘Big Muley’. Weighing about 11.7 kgs, it was found by Apollo 16 astronaut Charlie Duke at Plum Crater at the Moon’s Descartes Highlands in 1972.
Do you think 18 crores is too big an amount for this rare rock? Let us know in the comments!
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