NWA 7397 — PARTIAL SLICE OF THE PLANET MARS

Specimens of the planet Mars are among the most exotic substances on Earth, with less than 400 pounds known to exist. The delivery mechanism to Earth was an asteroid impact on Mars that ejected material off the Martian surface into an Earth-intersecting orbit. This is the 7,397th distinct meteorite to be recovered and classified by scientists after having been found in the Northwest Africa (NWA) region of the Sahara Desert. The determination of Martian origin is the result of research conducted by hundreds of scientists throughout the world. In addition to many arcane chemical and isotopic markers, the link to Mars was speculative until an analysis was conducted on the glassy inclusions of other suspected Martian meteorites. Within the glass were tiny bubbles of gas. The gas was analyzed and it matched perfectly with the signature of the Martian atmosphere as reported by NASA’s Viking Missions to Mars. The author of the scientific abstract on NWA 7397 is Dr. Anthony Irving, the world’s foremost classifier of planetary meteorites. The official classification of this meteorite appears in the 102nd edition of the Meteoritical Bulletin.