Iron Ore? Meteor? Dont know jack!

[ashleysflyr]

Iron Ore? Meteor? Don't know jack!

Here is my item. It is approximately 10 inches X 10 inches and weighs 29 pounds 15 ounces! Looks like iron ore that I have found in the past (same dark brown/burgundy color), but is so much heavier and has quartz in the linear structure. Also has rocks embedded within it. Has one smooth side, and several rough/linear structured side. Thanks for the help! Here's the pics...

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

A History of Mining on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska - Grab it through Amazon!

[aquachigger]

Re: Iron Ore? Meteor? Don't know jack!

Cool looking specimen. I don't know what it is with any certainty. But I don't believe it to be a meteorite. The quartz inclusions would rule that out for sure.

 

[Lucas]

Re: Iron Ore? Meteor? Don't know jack!

Cool looking specimen. I don't know what it is with any certainty. But I don't believe it to be a meteorite. The quartz inclusions would rule that out for sure.

What he said.

Might be purer iron than your other finds... = weighs more.

 

[Tuberale]

Re: Iron Ore? Meteor? Don't know jack!

One of the first tests that should be done is simple: does a magnet stick to it?

Second test: grind a small window into the stone near what appears to be metal. Look at the "window" into the stone with a hand lens. Does the metal appear to have embedded crystals of metal?

Third test: take some of the ground material from the window you created in the second test to a chemistry lab. Ask whether nickel is present. Presence of nickel strongly suggestive of meteorite.

Meteorites are difficult to tell apart from iron slag. (Iron slag is my guess, btw. But I might be wrong.) The weight of this suggests iron content, but need to wait for magnet test to be certain. There may be metal content based on the appearance of the rounded edges of the stone, but not positive until a small window can be ground into the metal. Most recent (last 100,000 years or so) meteorites will still look metallic, but rusting can occur on ancient falls. Regardless of white inclusions (don't think that's quartz), nickel present strongly supports meteorite identification.

Where was this found (state, county)?

 

[ridger12]

Re: Iron Ore? Meteor? Don't know jack!

Whatever it is, it looks interesting. I had a rock for years I thought for sure was a meteorite. I was looking forward to having it sliced and selling it off on eBay until I found this site, http://meteorites.wustl.edu/meteorwrongs/meteorwrongs.htm. There are lots of good photos there of rocks and minerals that are commonly mistaken for meteorites.

 

[Tuberale]

Re: Iron Ore? Meteor? Don't know jack!

That is a good site. That said, there is so much variation in meteorites no individual site can provide all answers. Some meteorites have very little iron in them, are light-weight, and almost all white. Very uncommon, even for meteorites, and even harder to recognize.