In February 2021, the Winchcombe meteorite became the first “rock from another world” to be recovered in the UK for 30 years. With the first fragments found on a driveway in Gloucestershire only 12 hours after landing, it is both scientifically and culturally priceless.
At 9.54 pm on the 28th February 2021, the Winchcombe meteorite produced a spectacular fireball over the UK. Data from UKFAll were critical to calculating the pre-atmospheric orbit, initial meteoroid size and mass, and strewn field of the Winchcombe meteorite.
A list of UKFAll’s research paper outcomes and articles are available here.
Following reports from the local community and a search by UK planetary scientists, >500 g of the Winchcombe meteorite were recovered within a week of the fall. The meteorite is curated at the Natural History Museum, London, with samples having been sent out across the world for analysis.
Teams from several university groups visited the area to search for meteorites. This footage from the field was recorded by Professor Katherine Joy of the University of Manchester (March 2021) and shows how UKFAll searches for meteorites. The video was taken with a 360 degree camera, so you can grab the screen and move it around to change your view:
Winchcombe is a rare type of meteorite known as a carbonaceous chondrite and contains solid materials dating back to the birth of the Solar System 4.6 billion years ago. It also has water locked-up in minerals and a few percent carbon, some of which forms complex organic molecules. Meteorites like Winchcombe played a crucial role in the delivery of water and pre-biotic molecules to the early Earth.
Media
BBC Winchcombe meteorite gets official classification
BBC Winchcombe meteorite: Is this the UK’s most important fireball?
BBC Winchcombe meteorite sees museum visitors treble
BBC Winchcombe meteorite driveway to go on display
BBC Winchcombe meteorite: ‘I want schoolchildren to be inspired’
Video Explainer
The UK Fireball Alliance 