Meteorites

Pluto was reclassified as a dwarf planet 10 years ago today. While many grieved the loss of the ninth planet, we’re now learning more than ever about this ball of ice and its faraway neighborhood at the edge of the solar system. So, what ended Pluto’s run as a planet? The International Astronomical Union, or IAU, defines a planet by three qualities: 1. Orbits the Sun 2. Big enough for gravity to shape it into a sphere (which is called “hydrostatic equilibrium”) Read more about Learning from Pluto as a Dwarf Planet

Two images, one showing the outside of a rock and the other showing the cross section, which is speckled tan, black and gold

The residents of a Chicago suburb were jolted awake just before midnight on March 26, 2003—by meteorites falling through their roofs and windows. The Park Forest meteorite, named for the area at the center of the shower, fell in one of the most heavily populated areas to see meteorites in recent history. Read more about A Breakup with Lasting Impact: Meteorites from a 470-Million-Year-Old Split

They are the “Mona Lisas” of meteorites – out of over 50,000 known meteorites, only 101 of them are fossilized, and four of them will be on display at The Field Museum. Read more about Fossil Meteorites Arrive at The Field Museum