A rock from Mars sat in the sands of the Sahara, untouched and unnoticed, until a meteorite hunter picked it up in Agadez, Nigeria last year. It weighed nearly 25 kilos, the biggest Martian meteorite anyone\u2019s ever found on Earth. And now it\u2019s gone. Yes, sold. At Sotheby\u2019s. For just over $5.3 million.<\/p>\n
No one knows who bought it. No one knows where it\u2019s going. All we know is that a piece of another planet, blasted off the surface of Mars\u00a0by a violent impact, traveled through space for who knows how long, crash-landed in the desert\u2026 and is now the most expensive space rock in private hands.<\/p>\n
The meteorite\u2019s official name is NWA 16788, and it\u2019s considered extraordinary. Not only because it\u2019s massive, but because it\u2019s almost perfectly preserved. And there\u2019s barely any damage from Earth\u2019s environment. That suggests it fell recently. And inside, it\u2019s full of secrets. The previous record-holder, Taoudenni 002 \u00a0weighned 14.5 kilos.<\/p>\n
This rock is about 20% of something called maskelynite, a kind of natural glass that forms when rock gets hit with extreme heat and pressure, like, during an asteroid collision on Mars, for example. And the rest of the meteorite is a mix of pyroxene and olivine, which gives it that grainy, volcanic texture. That makes this piece a rare class of Martian rocks called micro-gabbros that scientists have only identified a few times.<\/p>\n
A true tale from the stars that\u2019s worth millions<\/p>\n
Once upon a time a lost rock from Mars fell to earth, and it was picked up by a human in the desert. Well now, it is probably sitting somewhere fancy, maybe in a display case. Maybe in a safe. Maybe in a lab.<\/p>\n
The rock was first confirmed as Martian by experts at the Shanghai Astronomy Museum. From there, it ended up in the hands of collectors. And eventually, it made its way to Sotheby\u2019s, where auction estimates hovered around $2 to $4 million. It sold for more. Way more. $5.296 million, to be exact. The identity of the buyer? Kept under wraps.<\/p>\n
A meteorite like this doesn\u2019t come around often<\/p>\n