In total, approximately 100 tonnes of fragments have been recovered, the most of any meteorite find. The craters and surrounding areas contain many fragments of an iron meteorite. They were reported to the general public in 1576, but were already well-known by aboriginal peoples. The craters are estimated to be four to five thousand years old. The crater field covers 18.5 by 3 kilometres (11.5 by 1.9 mi) and contains at least 26 craters, the largest being 115 by 91 metres (377 by 299 ft). The site straddles the provinces of Chaco and Santiago del Estero, located 1,000 kilometers (620 mi) north-northwest of Buenos Aires, Argentina and approximately 500 kilometres (310 mi) southwest of Asunción, Paraguay. Of all of the meteorites that fall on the earth, scientists estimate that only about five percent are Iron Meteorites.Location of the craters in Chaco Province, ArgentinaĬampo del Cielo refers to a group of iron meteorites and the area in Argentina where they were found. Of course, almost all of the remaining portion of the meteorite is iron. The Campo del Cielo is classified in Group IAB,, 6.68% Ni, 0.43% Co, 0.25% P, 87 ppm Ga, 407 ppm Ge, 3.6 ppm Ir. The Widmanstatten bands are thicker than those at Canyon Diablo or Odessa, but still have the same coarse octahedrite classification.Ĭomposition of Campo del Cielo Meteorites The Campo del Cielo is a polycrystalline coarse octahedrite. These dates are consistent with an Indian lore tradition that the irons fell from the heavens. Dates of 5800 years (plus or minus 200 years) and 3950 years (plus or minus 90 years) have been obtained. Scientists have estimated the date of the Campo del Cielo fall using radiocarbon dating of charred wood found in the craters. Subsequent searches have found Campos over a large region. Since the Indians believed that the irons fell from heaven the name is undoubtedly derived from the meteorites found in this area, which is an open brush-covered plain having little water and few rocks, making it great meteorite hunting country. The Campo del Cielo meteorite site was first discovered by the Spanish in 1576 in the Gran Chaco Gualamba region of Argentina, about 500 miles north-northwest of Buenos Aries The location of the find was Campo del Cielo (field of the heavens), an appropriate name for the location of a meteorite strewn field. This planet broke apart during formation approximately 4.5 billions years ago during the birth of the solar system, and its remnants comprise the asteroid belt Iron meteorites originate from the molten iron core of what was briefly a planet between Mars and Jupiter. In this respect, the field is similar to Sikhote-Alin. This is in contrast to Canyon Diablo and Odessa where the main crater-forming mass is believed to have vaporized or shattered on impact. The main part of the crater-forming mass was found in each of these craters. All together, searchers have found at least 12 craters. A smaller one is 56 meters in diameter and 5 meters deep. Strewnfield: The larger Campo del Cielo meteorites are found in and around a series of small craters in the southwestern part of the strewn field. Location: Campo del Cielo, Gran Chaco Gualamba,Īrgentina, about 500 miles north-northwest of
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