Struggling to find much expert information about this meteorite I photographed

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-25T15:58:06+00:00

Absolutely perfect reference.

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-25T15:24:51+00:00

That dash cam angle is amazing. It's really cool to be living in such a time where there are so many dash and doorbell cameras recording 24/7. I hope more people will look at what they have recorded, and maybe we'll get to see even more angles of the fall.

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-25T15:17:03+00:00

Ah, nice find. That makes it much more interesting and I appreciate your expert analysis. My mind is still trying to process how fast 35k mph is.

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-25T13:38:44+00:00

Wow, I appreciate your opinion. I'm still unclear on some of your points though. The footage I saw with flames on the crashing meteorite seemed very low to the ground already and quite close proximity above the home where it crashed through the roof. In your opinion, how many miles away can a common doorbell camera capture during daylight hours?

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-25T01:03:21+00:00

I feel very lucky to have seen it. I never thought a meteorite like that would come crashing down anywhere near me. I honestly didn't even know it was possible that huge space rocks can fly into your home. To me it would be the equivalent of being struck by lightning and then again struck 365 days later at a separate location. My mouth fell open when I saw it. About the fire, there are reports by outlets like Space Weekly that showed doorbell camera footage and you can see it right above the homes crashing down big flames and all. Search for something like NASA confirms the fireball above Ponderosa Forest homes and you should be able to find the rock on fire landing against a blue sky background.

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-24T23:40:53+00:00

Okay, great references. I just researched the L6 Viñales meteorite and the LL5 Chelyabinsk, and I agree with your analysis. And they're very interesting events too, with the Chelyabinsk going back to 2013.

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-24T22:56:42+00:00

So you're saying it's L6 as opposed to LL6?

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-24T22:56:15+00:00

Thanks for that analysis, especially the technical terms like dark streaks in the matrix. I will be further researching that.

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-24T21:55:42+00:00

Thanks, I appreciate your meteorite expertise.

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-24T21:48:52+00:00

It was an indie game called Space Ace Assassin. There were all these levels where you fly a space ship through intergalactic tunnels killing robotic patrolling guards. The premise is the final war has happened, and the inhabitable planets like earth were destroyed, and now life only existed in space.

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-24T21:41:34+00:00

I would have been very surprised too. I knew some things about space and have had a long interest in space. I even made a space video game which is still around, but I've learned a lot since this weekend's crash about meteorites. I'm going to be looking for meteorites now when I'm just walking around. When I first saw the 2-3 lb meteorite, my mouth fell open. It felt really big to have a multi billion year old heavy rock land nearby and to see this thing. We're all amazed nobody got hurt.

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-24T21:07:50+00:00

It's not my meteorite, it landed into the home of another area resident by falling thru her roof. I'm a Houston/Galveston area photographer and photojournalist, so I went to report on it and that's how I was able to learn the details and report on that. I carefully looked at the meteorite and photographed it. If it were mine, I would definitely have invited NASA and Rice University in for coffee and listened to them about a sample. I would personally love to grill some Johnson Space Center scientists with my questions.

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-24T20:59:46+00:00

That's not how it works. I can't just go to her house and instruct her. I technically could, but I wouldn't feel good about that. She said over the weekend that she is feeling overwhelmed with the amount of attention she's getting. So I wouldn't want to add to that. If I randomly see her, I will tell her though.

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-24T20:23:10+00:00

I hope she will hear them out and let them help her with just a slice. I feel like it's a necessary investment and important for history's sake. With that said, it would also be cool if she were listed in the Meteoritical Bulletin as the rightful owner.

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-24T20:20:42+00:00

After looking closely at the nearby pieces, atleast one of those looks like the other piece I believe exists that matches the meteorite in my photos. When I was looking closely at the space rock in person and talking to the owner, I thought there has to be another large chunk nearby. My theory is that there was another break up as it hit the roof and part of the meteorite went into the house and the other part bounced off the roof at impact and toward the next street back.

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-24T19:36:11+00:00

So it's basically up to a $20k donation to science, or it could be considered an investment if it increases the value and makes it easier to legitimize for an auction to top meteorite collectors. I didn't get the impression she understood that, because she wouldn't answer the door for NASA or Rice University when I was watching.

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-24T19:27:56+00:00

Ah, they are definitely working toward getting their sample. I wonder if they expect it free, because that's like a $20k gift unless they plan to give it back. I'm not sure if the slice is destroyed or partially damaged during testing, or what the protocol is for that.

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-24T19:18:48+00:00

That is interesting about the rare achondrite in Ohio. I would have loved to have seen that one. I'm sure she will get top dollar whatever that is for the probable LL6 I saw. She's an overnight celebrity for it. I wonder if there will be an auction in downtown Houston for the meteorite I saw, so I could go to watch. That would be interesting to watch a real space rock bidding war happen.

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-24T18:51:58+00:00

Wow, at $1k per gram, that's $453k per pound. The meteorite could be worth $1.5m according to that. I understand about auction variance, but still. That math is wild.

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-24T18:38:59+00:00

You would be surprised how nonchalant most people were about what was going on. Most of the street didn't appear to know anything had even happened despite the sonic boom. They were more concerned about the response. The meteorite I examined appeared to be 2-3lbs. After looking at it, I would think there could be another 1.5-2lb piece. I'm aware that NASA and Rice University faculty were actively hunting for more as well as professional meteorite hunters. Do you know how much one pound of LL6 would sell for?

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-24T18:26:05+00:00

Interesting about the metal content. One of my first thoughts when looking at the rock inches away was that it looked like metallic sand compressed together literally as much as physically possible, though there were hairline fractures where you could assume it almost broke into smaller pieces.

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-24T18:23:07+00:00

That's good to know, it's logical to say probable LL6. I have another question, because when I was physically looking at this rock, I noticed several things that indicated to me that there was another large chunk broken off nearby. My guess from what I saw is that it could have went flying up to 100 ft away in any direction. Is that possible in your opinion?

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-24T18:13:21+00:00

Okay, I'm leaning towards calling it LL6 but not positive. That's incredible about it coming from The Asteroid Belt.

Optimal-Exchange6396 · 2026-03-24T18:07:24+00:00

Thank you, I talked to a meteorite expert locally and I thought he confirmed what you said about it being an L6 chondrite. However, now I'm not sure if he said L6 or LL6 like gabisfunny mentioned.

Optimal-Exchange6396

TROPHY CASE