A fragment of El Ali, the extraterrestrial object that landed in Somalia in 2020, has revealed unprecedented clues that are crucial for understanding the formation of asteroids.
These are elaliite and elkinstantonite, two materials never before discovered on Earth or in previous space missions.
According to Global News, El Ali is a massive meteorite weighing up to 15 tons, discovered in Somalia in 2020, and is the ninth largest meteorite ever recorded. It is twice as dense as common rocks on Earth and possesses magnetic properties.
Close-up of a 70g slice of the object that landed in Somalia, containing two unseen minerals – (Photo: METEORITE COLLECTION – UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA)
“During the classification process – describing this new type of rock for science – I found some interesting inclusions and minerals hidden within the meteorite,” said Professor Chris Herd from the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Alberta (Canada).
According to Live Science, the two new materials are minerals found from a 70g slice of the meteorite. Previously, the entire cosmic rock was classified as an IAB complex iron meteorite, with spots of small silicate chunks.
These unique discoveries will help further understand the parent asteroid from which the meteorite originated, potentially providing insights into the investigation of how primordial objects in the universe were formed.
Deciphering primordial asteroids is also about unraveling our origins, as asteroids play a significant role in the history of the Solar System’s formation. For example, for Earth, asteroids and comets that bombarded it during its “infancy” could have been the “life vessels”, bringing the seeds of the oceans and organic matter.
