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Earth is Littered With Space Cones

space cone

Earth is littered with cones from space, and it’s our planet’s own fault. Most meteorites found on Earth are just randomly shaped blobs. But a surprisingly high number of them, about 25%, are cone-shaped when you fit all their pieces back together. Scientists call these conical space-stones “oriented meteorites.” And now, thanks to a pair of experiments published online today (July 22) in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), we know why: The atmosphere is carving the rocks into more aerodynamic shapes as they fall to Earth. “These experiments tell an origin story for oriented meteorites,” … Read more