A Costa Rican meteorite could contain answers to the biggest questions about how life on planet earth began. Scientists at the Central American School of Geology examine parts of a 2019 meteorite that affected Aguas Zarcas, a village in the tropical rainforest of Costa Rica, described as “more valuable than gold.” The Costa Rican meteorite could provide a cosmic library with new information about how life on Earth began billions of years ago.
According to in 2017 paper by scientists at McMaster University and the Max Planck Institute , life on Earth began between 3.7 and 4.5 billion years ago after a series of meteorites full of essential chemical elements hit hot liquid ponds. A series of wet and dry cycles then bound together the basic molecular building blocks of life in these nutrient-rich arrays. And then miraculously, the first self-replicating RNA molecules of our planet emerged, delivering the first lines of genetic code that would eventually evolve into all life on earth.
An unusual arrowhead meteorite falls from the Aguas Zarcas. This example belongs to private collector, Michael Farmer. (Laurence Garvie / Center for Meteorite Studies, Arizona State University )
Cosmic Hot Rocks may confirm or refute the Big Bang Theory
IN Science Mag article states that on April 23, 2019, just after 9 p.m., a “fierce emissary”, the so-called Aguas Zarcas meteor, crossed the skies of Costa Rica in a trail of unearthly orange and green light. This interpersonal visitor was described as the size of a washing machine. It fragmented as it passed through the protective atmosphere of earth and crashed into the jungle. This Costa Rican meteorite is composed of the same chemical elements that struck the Earth’s crust just before life began billions of years ago.
Scientists are collecting a total of 60 pounds (27 kilograms) of meteorite fragments in Aguas Zarcas, the largest piece weighing about 4 pounds (1.8 kilograms). According to researchers, the carbon in this meteorite was “formed from nuclear fission in stars and its origin.” And in this “rock” were fixed molecular fragments of water, nickel and sulfur, the same isotopes that make up the sun. Currently, these cosmic hot rocks are being analyzed. This research can lead to a clearer understanding of how exactly life on earth formed and confirmed or resisted the Big Bang theory.
This color image is a composite element map showing the distribution of various minerals on a microscopic scale in a fragment of the Aguas Zarcas meteorite. Orange-yellow colors show the distribution of a mineral called tochilinite, deep blue colors represent olivine, and red colors are pentlandite and pyrrhotite. (Laurence Garvie / Center for Meteorite Studies, Arizona State University )
How were the Costa Rican meteorite fragments found
Every year, tens of thousands of meteorites pass through the Earth’s atmosphere and 99% of them fragment into molecular matter. However, some pieces make it to Earth. To date, more than 60,000 have been found and classified by scientists. But meteor attacks that are witnessed are exceptionally rare. Science Mag stated that only “1,196 have ever been recorded.” The impact event of Aguas Zarcas in 2019 was witnessed by many people and one woman found a piece just after it landed.
Marcia Campos Muñoz held off the sale of her largest meteorite chunk, even as its value surpassed that of gold. (Andrea Solano Benavides / AAAS)
According to Science Mag, Marcia Campos Muñoz was sitting on the couch in her pajamas just after 9 a.m. when she “heard a forbidding rumble.” Her heart smelled and her animals panicked when the meteor “rattled the house to its bones.” When the smoke billowed, she found “a hole of grapefruit in the corrupt zinc roof and a soiled plastic table” and beneath this rubble lay the burning black meteorite scattered across the floor. Not afraid of radiation poisoning, unlike typical movie scenarios, Marcia picked up the biggest fragment. She said it was still hot to tackle. Within hours, a local journalist visited the house and streamed videos of the cosmic damage and evidence on a live Facebook video.
Cosmic jewels more valuable than gold
The legal and illegal meteorite fragment is driven by geological treasure hunters who track down fields and deserts for rare rocks that they often share with, and sell to, geological scientists.
The Fukang meteorite, made of nickel and iron covered with olivine (green) crystals, thought to be about 4.5 billion years old, gives a good example of how much space rocks are worth. The Fukang meteorite was discovered in 2000, typically named after the region where it fell on Earth, and is considered the most beautiful meteorite ever discovered. And, believe it or not, a Fukang meteorite weighing 68 pounds (31 kilograms) sold for a staggering $ 2 million (1.7 million euros)!
AJ Timothy Jull, editor-in-chief of the magazine Meteorology and planetary science , says at such incredible ratings, opportunistic space rock hunters in Costa Rica can soon be ruled out, as governments around the world realize the potential value in finding and selling rocks that may hold the secrets to life on earth.
Top image: This tiny, brilliant Aguas Zarcas Costa Rican meteorite fragment may contain amino acids, along with stardust that prevents the sun. Source: Laurence Garvie / Center for Meteorite Studies, Arizona State University
By Ashley Cowie
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