A meteorite weighing 54 pounds, originating from Mars, is set to be auctioned for an estimated $2 million to $4 million. Known as NWA 16788, it is the largest piece of Mars found on Earth and was discovered in Niger. This meteorite is about 70% larger than the previously known largest piece and represents nearly 7% of all Martian material on Earth. Confirmation of its origin was achieved through laboratory analysis comparing its composition to Martian samples from the Viking space probe. Only 400 Martian meteorites exist among over 77,000 recognized meteorites on Earth.
This Martian meteorite is the largest piece of Mars we have ever found by a long shot. So it's more than double the size of what we previously thought was the largest piece of Mars.
The red, brown and gray hunk is about 70% larger than the next largest piece of Mars found on Earth and represents nearly 7% of all the Martian material currently on this planet.
Collection
[
|
...
]