On July 16, Sotheby’s auction house in New York held an auction selling the largest known Martian meteorite, NWA 16788. It was sold for a record amount.
NWA 16788 was found in the Sahara Desert in 2023. Laboratory analysis confirmed that its isotopic composition was similar to that of Martian soil. NWA 16788 was knocked out of Mars by the impact of a large asteroid, after which it wandered through space until it fell to Earth. Apparently, this happened recently. This is indicated by the fact that the physical and chemical composition of NWA 16788 has not undergone significant changes since its fall.
The Martian meteorite was put up for auction for a starting price of $2 million. Such a high price is explained by the fact that fragments of Mars are incredibly rare: of the more than 77,000 officially recognized meteorites, only 400 are Martian, their total mass is approximately 374 kg. Thus, with a weight of 24.67 kg, NWA 16788 accounts for approximately 6.5% of all currently known Martian material.
Another important difference between NWA 16788 and other Martian meteorites is its appearance. It also looks exactly like the surface of the Red Planet. Most of the other meteorites are very small, thin pieces, and their appearance makes it impossible to guess that they came to Earth from Mars.
Despite the uniqueness of NWA 16788, the battle for this cosmic relic was not as heated as many had expected. Nevertheless, the Martian meteorite was sold for $4.3 million, exceeding the initial estimate of $4 million. Taking into account additional fees and taxes, the total price of the lot was approximately $5.3 million. The buyer did not disclose the name.
It is worth noting that some scientists have expressed regret that NWA 16788 will be kept in a private collection rather than in a museum, where it could be viewed by anyone interested. At the same time, if it weren’t for the meteorite market, there would be no meteorite hunters. This means that NWA 16788 would still be lying in the Sahara desert and no one would know about its existence.
According to CNN
