Tarda - carbonaceous chondrite C3 - Marocco - In stock
On Tuesday, August 25, 2020 at around 14:30 Moroccan time, a bolide was observed in southern Morocco. The bolide's trajectory was from SW to NE. Local residents and meteorite hunters immediately launched a search between the towns of Goulmima and Errachidia. Hundreds of people began searching the same day and the first piece was found by Alalou Youssef near his village of Tarda the following day. A national road linking Ouarzazate to Errachidia passes through the site of the crash and because of its easy accessibility, thousands of people soon headed to the area. The meteor was followed by a thick trail of white smoke that remained hanging for several seconds. The fireball reportedly released small pieces along its edges, and witnesses said the fireball was accompanied by a whistle followed by several detonations. One eyewitness reported a near vertical trajectory. Thousands of small, mostly complete stones ranging in weight from just a few milligrams to 99 grams were collected. Many of the pieces were recovered by hunters using magnets. The scatter field is about 3 km long and is located ~10 km east of Tardy.
The Tarda meteorite is classified as a C3 carbonaceous chondrite.