Recent meteor shower?

[GoSlash27]

One of my co-workers here in Eastern Iowa found a chunk of nickel/ iron meteorite (according to my layman's eye) on his property yesterday. It's a chunk of nickel/ iron about the size of 2 fists. Fell right through his backyard table...

The way I figure it, something that big should make a heckuva fireball, but there are no recent reports of any fireballs over the midwestern US, just the big one spotted over Maine and Scotland the other day.

I guess what I'm asking is if anyone here's aware of a meteor spotted in the last couple days over the midwestern United States, or if this could somehow be a chunk of the Scotland meteor.

Thanks!

-Slashy

[Dkmdlb]

Let's see a picture!

[GoSlash27]

3 minutes ago, Dkmdlb said:

Let's see a picture!

 Sorry, but it's not my meteorite. If I'd thought of it earlier, I would've taken a picture.

 I'll see if I can get a pic to forward. I may not be able to...

[Waxing_Kibbous]

I assume you went here already? http://spaceweather.com/

Maybe this will help http://fireballs.ndc.nasa.gov/

[GoSlash27]

Waxing Kibbous,

 Nothing over the last few days that matches I don't think their cameras can triangulate out this far.

Best,
-Slashy

Edited March 3, 2016 by GoSlash27

[tater]

Meteor showers occur when we pass through an area with more than the usual amount of debris in it. None the less, there are meteors pretty much constantly. We're well above town, and have fairly dark skies for being in Albuquerque, and we also have a hot tub we use a lot. I see a couple decent meteors pretty much every night, and I'm usually out there maybe 30 minutes. In fact, I usually play a game that I stay in there until I see a decent one (I don;t even keep track of the "slash" type, I'm only interested fairly bright ones.

Long story, short, it can happen any time. I frequently daydream watching the sky that I see one growing, and not leaving a trail... 

[GoSlash27]

I've taken a pic. He found another chunk nearly as big as this one yesterday. 

I still come up blank for any reported meteors within the last 3 days, and he's certain it happened within that time frame.

Best,
-Slashy

Edited March 4, 2016 by GoSlash27

[tater]

Wow, that is just awesome.

[Randazzo]

There is something vaguely repulsive about that thing. Looks like a smokers lung.

I'd be inclined to split it open, particularly if I had a second chunk to preserve.

[Dkmdlb]

And he said it fell through his table? It looks very much like a slag and not so much like a meteorite. 

http://meteorites.wustl.edu/id/slag.htm

[Mikki]

Some of them drop quite slowly on earths surface, overtaken by earths orbitpath at morning hours...

[GoSlash27]

2 minutes ago, Dkmdlb said:

And he said it fell through his table? It looks very much like a slag and not so much like a meteorite. 

http://meteorites.wustl.edu/id/slag.htm

Aye. Fell through his table. Apparently during working hours.

Best,
-Slashy

[Dkmdlb]

Well that's pretty cool, then. He's got some money on his hands there, and a very slick display piece.

[Mikki]

Finding another chunk is very... weird however... statistically impossible, except i fell apart on earth literally.

Edited March 4, 2016 by Mikki
spell8D

[tater]

Knock a chunk off and see if it is lighter inside.

[tater]

Looks sort of slaggish to me...

http://meteorite.unm.edu/meteorites/meteorite-museum/how-id-meteorite/

[GoSlash27]

Well... I'm not going to recommend he split it on his own. If you folks were to find something like this, where would you take it to verify it?

 

[SuperFastJellyfish]

It's probably worth more to collectors as a whole original chunk.  I'd call a museum and see what they recommend to do to get it checked out.

[Mikki]

15 minutes ago, GoSlash27 said:

Well... I'm not going to recommend he split it on his own. If you folks were to find something like this, where would you take it to verify it?

 

Take it to a university and let some geology students examine it... for free.

[GoSlash27]

That's what he's going to do. He'll take it up to Ames, IA. 

It could easily be a large iron slag. That would explain the lack of fireball. Although how it came to be stuck in the ground under his destroyed patio table would be a mystery in that case...

Edited March 4, 2016 by GoSlash27

[SuperFastJellyfish]

Kids with a water balloon slingshot from across the neighborhood?  African swallows?  Who knows?   

[Majorjim!]

1 hour ago, GoSlash27 said:

I've taken a pic. He found another chunk nearly as big as this one yesterday. 

I still come up blank for any reported meteors within the last 3 days, and he's certain it happened within that time frame.

Best,
-Slashy

I don't think that is a meteorite. Looks more like some kind of industrial slag to me.

43 minutes ago, Dkmdlb said:

And he said it fell through his table? It looks very much like a slag and not so much like a meteorite. 

http://meteorites.wustl.edu/id/slag.htm

I found one as a child, I took it to the natural history museum in London and a guy looked at it and said it was just slag.. It looked exactly like that. Meteorites tend to be smoother due to the heat during descent.

Edited March 4, 2016 by Majorjim

[adsii1970]

17 minutes ago, Majorjim said:

I don't think that is a meteorite. Looks more like some kind of industrial slag to me.

I found one as a child, I took it to the natural history museum in London and a guy looked at it and said it was just slag.. It looked exactly like that. Meteorites tend to be smoother due to the heat during descent.

If it lands in marshy soil or water, it could look like this because of rapid cooling. I have seen a few of those in places like the Smithsonian... However, in this case, there is an unmistakable mark of industrial slag - a vertical fissure that is layered...

[GoSlash27]

14 minutes ago, adsii1970 said:

If it lands in marshy soil or water, it could look like this because of rapid cooling. I have seen a few of those in places like the Smithsonian... However, in this case, there is an unmistakable mark of industrial slag - a vertical fissure that is layered...

Yeah, I'm beginning to lean towards "slag" myself. A chunk of slag going through his table is unlikely, but not as unlikely as a chunk of meteorite that big without reports of a fireball

 Thanks for all the help! I'll let you know what the results wind up being 

Best,
-Slashy

  

[tater]

Maybe some neighbor has been playing with a trebuchet?