It is considered 'high' the probability of finding meteorites on the ground up to a kilogram of weight generated by the so-called 'midnight meteor' that last May 24 illuminated the skies of northern Italy: for this reason in Cremona field research has officially begun by a dozen volunteers led by Daniele Gardiol, national coordinator of the Prisma project, the First Italian Network for the Study of Meteors and the Atmosphere of the National Institute of Astrophysics.
The area to explore is quite large: in fact, the trajectory of the bolide had an inclination of only 34 degrees with respect to the ground, so the area where meteorites can be found in the mass range 50-1,000 grams is 9 kilometers long and about 500 meters wide, for a total of 4.5 square kilometers. The eastern half of the village of Sospiro coincides with the 500-gram meteorite search area, while the 1000-gram meteorite area is located in the north of the country. Towards the Po instead you should find the smaller meteorites. "The area is not easy to explore because of the crops and houses," explain the experts of Prisma. "A much more difficult situation than looking for meteorites in deserts or Antarctica, where the contrast between meteorite and soil is maximum."
Who in the area of Sospiro should spot a dark stone or a metal fragment of a few centimeters in diameter, with rounded edges and a patina similar to soot, should not touch it but photograph it, take note of the GPS coordinates and contact directly Daniele Gardiol dell'Inaf.
In case of actual discovery, it would be the third Italian meteorite whose orbit is known thanks to Prisma. The first was the Cavezzo meteorite, whose recovery took place in early January 2020, while the second was the Matera meteorite, which fell on the evening of February 14 of this year and recovered shortly after. "Of the approximately 70,000 meteorites recovered on Earth, only 45 are known about their orbit and until a few years ago, before the Prisma era, Italy was absent from this list," the experts point out.
Midnight meteorite hunt, possible 1 kg debris
2023-05-31T07:43:20.398Z
Highlights: It is considered 'high' the probability of finding meteorites on the ground up to a kilo of weight generated by the'midnight meteor' that on May 24 illuminated the skies of northern Italy. The area where meteorites can be found in the mass range 50-1,000 grams is 9 kilometers long and about 500 meters wide, for a total of 4.5 square kilometers. The eastern half of the village of Sospiro coincides with the 500-gram meteorite search area. Towards the Po instead you should find the smaller meteorites.
It is considered 'high' the probability of finding meteorites on the ground up to a kilo of weight generated by the 'midnight meteor' that on May 24 illuminated the skies of northern Italy (ANSA)
