Interesting Findings in Sutter Mill’s Meteorite

On April 22, 2012, a meteorite, scientists have named Sutter Mill landed in California’s gold country. The findings are being detailed in a new report. After reviewing the composition of the meteorite, researchers have found microscopic diamonds embedded into it. While there are natural diamonds, they are much smaller than what you find in a diamond ring. This is a rare find in that most materials are eliminated once the meteor hits the Earth’s atmosphere. The fact that scientists have found these small diamonds may show that there were much larger diamonds included in the original meteorite before it hit the Earth. This predicts that astronauts may bring home even more interesting findings from meteorites during their expeditions.

Another interesting find within the meteorite is the element called chromium. This shows that at least 5 stars collided with the solar system at some point. It is important to note that these materials were still intact when it reached the Earth. Other elements found included calcium, calcium sulphide, and magnesium carbonate. What makes this interesting is that it shows the meteor reached temperatures of 572 Fahrenheit.

The meteorite consisted of unheated and heated portions which is very unusual for any meteorite. The heated portions in the meteorite are responsible for many changes that occurred. This is a useful finding for researchers when it comes to understand the life of a meteorite both before colliding with the Earth’s atmosphere and after. Amino acids were another finding researchers noticed when studying the composition of Sutter Mill’s meteorite. Scientists will use these findings to compare them with other meteorites that have entered the Earth’s atmosphere to better understand space and what it holds. You can find this study along with 12 others in the journal Meteoritics and Planetary Science.