A new exhibition displays the largest British meteorite for the first time in public and features extensively research carried out by OU scientists.
Objects in Space showcases what is believed to be Britain's largest meteorite, never previously seen in public. This huge specimen - found at the Lake House country estate in Wiltshire - weighs over 90kg. It forms the centrepiece of an eclectic new exhibition exploring the fascinating history and science behind two very different British meteorites.
DPS's Colin Pillinger said: "I'm delighted that the public are finally getting a chance to see these unique British meteorites that we have been studying at the OU for some time."
The meteorite from Lake House is thought to be the largest meteorite in the UK, it fell from space over 30,000 years ago, but its history on Earth is shrouded in mystery. It became known to scientists in the early 1990s, when the owners of the house brought it to the attention of researchers. When Prof Pillinger and a group of OU scientists began to investigate the rock, they were led on an intriguing detective trail, which would take them from Country Life magazine to the inventor of the spark plug, via the druids of Stonehenge.
While the second meteorite on display is considerably smaller, weighing just 32g, its size belies another intriguing story. Discovered in the 1970s at Danebury Hill Fort in Hampshire, it was originally thought to be an Iron Age artefact dating from when the fort was occupied by early Britons. However, when metal in the walnut sized object was analysed in the 1980s the archaeologists discovered that they were dealing with an extraterrestrial object. The meteorite was then set aside for further research, and only now is appearing in public for the first time. The exhibition displays beautiful images produced by CEPSAR's Virtual Microscope team and letters and books charting the history of scientific interest in meteorites from the Royal Society archives.
The exhibition is held at the Royal Society's London headquarters, 6-9 Carlton House Terrace, SW1Y 5AG and entrance is FREE but hurry, because this exclusive exhibition is only showing for a limited time and closes on 30 March 2012. Entry is by appointment only - please call 0207 451 2606 or visit The Royal Society Events Diary for more details.
10 February 2012