Tests for induced radioactivity, which are being carried out by Dr. David Lindstrom of JSC, measure the object s exposure to space radiation. This can be used to determine the size of the original meteoroid in space, estimates of which range up to 50 feet in diameter, with a mass of more than 55 tons. The next step in the study of the fragments will be baseline analyses of the organics in the meteorite. This would require the destruction of some samples, and negotiations are under way with the finder for permission to do such tests. You can tuck samples away for the future when new questions come along that people can t even think up now.
Carbonaceous chondrites contain many of the building blocks of life.
Sample of Yukon meteor that exploded over Yukon Territory, Canada, on Jan. 18, 2000. Murchison meteorite sample, which fell to Earth in Australia in 1969. Samples of the Yukon meteorite are being analyzed at NASA's Johnson Space Center at the request of the Geological Survey of Canada, Natural Resources Canada, which has borrowed them from the finder. The fragment is sealed in a nitrogen-filled bag to protect it from contamination. Samples of the meteorite are being analyzed at NASA's Johnson Space Center at the request of the Geological Survey of Canada, Natural Resources Canada, which is borrowing them from the finder.