Event 3 : UCLA Meteorite Collection

For the third event, I picked another great site on the UCLA campus, which is the Meteorite collection located at the Geology building. I took the Geology 5 last quarter, so this is the second time I walked into the collection room. The gallery room was very large and divided up into north, west, south and east sections. While walking around in the gallery, I found each section had different topics and there is information explained beside each exhibition.

Proof of Attendance

I pick several impressive exhibitions to be introduced in this blog, and I learned a lot more about meteorites after this visit. Below is the LL3.0 Semarkona, which is the best-preserved chondrite. This is the most primitive known type of chondrite and it was discovered soon after it fell. 

Semarkona

The components of chondrites are chondrules, iron metal, iron sulfide, and grained matrix. The chondrules are the most abundant components and account for about 70~80%. The stuff between the chondrules is called matrix, and refractory inclusions are also parts of its component. The refractory inclusion consists of Ca and Al oxides.

This giant piece is very beautiful and I noticed it as I walk in. This is called the "old woman iron meteorite", which is a fun name. This meteorite is the second largest meteorite from the USA mass with 2575kg which is 117.4lb. It's found in 1976 by three prospectors in the Old Woman mountains.






Here are two pictures that I took from the gallery. They are the pallasites, Esquel on the left and lmilac and Seymchan on the right. They are found in different places around the world. The bright yellow color underneath the black strips almost looks like gold. The textures and the colors on them are the perfect artwork from natural science.
       
The two exhibitions below are the Desert Grass and the Stony meteorite. The greenish glass is dense and the outer layer is nearly foam-like. During this visit, I was amazed by the diverse shapes, form, and colors of these meteorites. I will definitely recommend this collection to my friends because this gallery is very reachable for students and I will think of them as the delicate artwork of nature. 

Works Cited

“UCLA Meteorite Collection Finally Reaches the Public.” Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 10 Jan. 2014, www.latimes.com/science/la-sci-meteorite-museum-20140111-story.html.

Hamilton, Rosanna L. Meteoroids and Meteorites, solarviews.com/eng/meteor.htm.

“The UCLA Meteorite Gallery.” Meteorite Times Magazine, www.meteorite-times.com/the-ucla-meteorite-gallery/.

“Have You Found a Meteorite?” Aerolite Meteorites, aerolite.org/about/have-you-found-a-meteorite/.

“Types of Meteorites.” Natural History Museum.