THE IBITIRA METEORITE FALL

Name: IBITIRA.

The place of fall or discovery: near Ibitira of the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil; φ = 20° S; λ = 45° W.

Date of fall or discovery: fall June 30, 1957, between 5:00 and 5:30 p.m. local time.

Class and type: stone; (probably, achondrite ? E.K.).

The number of separate specimens: was found one.

Total weight: rough dimensions of the meteorite are 10 x 15 x 17.5 cm; weight unknown.

The circumstances of fall or discovery: the fireball passed northwestward and accompanied with a noise like the reverberation of thunder has been observed. This phenomenon has been marked in the radius about 160 km. At the end point of the trajectory the fireball was broken up and disappea­red at the height about 10 or 12 km above the earth’s surface.  The meteorite was found near the predicted point of the fall, in the village Ibitira.  It lay in a hole in the ground about 25 cm deep and 20 cm in diameter. The meteorite has a brilliant black crust, and a light brown. It was brought to the Institute of Technological Researches (Belo Horizonte). Pre­liminary chemical analysis show the presence, in de­creasing order of abundance, of silicon, magnesium, iron, aluminum, calcium, chromium, and titanium. Spectroscopic examination reveals lines of sulphur and manganese, but there were no signs of sodium, nickel and cobalt.

Source: the article: Vincent Menezes, "A Probable Meteorite Fall in Brazil" - Sky and Telescope, 1957, v. XVII, No 1, 10.