Cranbrook shows its meteorite collection Saturday

Cranbrook Institute of Science will offer the public a special opportunity to see some of the meteorites from its collection on Saturday, February 16 from 1-2pm. CranbrookÕs Geologist will be on hand with several specimens from CranbrookÕs collection which are not usually on view.

Cranbrook geologist John Zawiskie discusses the asteroid that flew close to Earth Friday and the meteor that injured nearly 1,000 people in Russia after it exploded in the sky.

In the wake of this week's Russian meteorite explosion and massive asteroid fly-by, Cranbrook Institute of Science officials plan to display meteorites from their vaults during a special viewing Saturday from 1 to 2 p.m.

"We know there's heightened interest," said Stephen Pagnani, Cranbrook Educational Community spokesman. "We're going to bring out some of the collections that are not normally on view."

The institute has meteorites both large and small.

"Since the meteor explosion over Russia was reported earlier Friday, our visitors have had questions about meteors and where they come from," said John Zawiskie, Cranbrook geologist.

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"Sharing some of our specimens will enable visitors to see and touch actual meteorites and learn more about them."

The collection includes meteorites that have been donated and others were purchased.

"Some are from the Grand Rapids area," Pagnani said.

According to geology.com, meteorites are rocks -- usually containing a great deal of extraterrestrial iron -- which were once part of planets or large asteroids. These celestial bodies broke up, or perhaps never fully formed, millions or even billions of years ago. Fragments from these long-dead alien worlds wandered in space for great periods of time before crossing paths with Earth. Their tremendous terminal velocity, which can result crashing through the atmosphere at 17,000 miles per hour, produces a short fiery life as a meteor. Most meteors burn for only a few seconds, and that brief period of heat is what makes meteorites unique and fascinating. Fierce temperatures cause surfaces to melt and flow, creating remarkable features that are unique to meteorites, such as regmaglypts ("thumbprints"), fusion crust, orientation, contraction cracks and rollover lips.