Meteorite Tatahouine – Tunisia

The Tatahouine meteorite belongs to the achondrites, more specifically to the subgroup of diogenites. Diogenites are deep igneous rocks that formed in the mantle of Vesta, one of the largest objects in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. It is considered a protoplanet and has a differentiated planet-like structure, meaning it has a core, mantle and crust. Its composition is predominantly pyroxenic, meaning that it contains high amounts of the mineral pyroxene, often along with small amounts of olivine and plagioclase. Scientists suspect that they were ejected from Vesta during collisions with other asteroids and eventually hit Earth as meteorites.

The Tatahouine meteorite fell near the town of Tatahouine in southern Tunisia on June 27, 1931. The fall of the Tatahouine meteorite was observed by several residents of the town of Tatahouine. The meteorite broke up into thousands of small fragments as it entered the atmosphere, which were scattered over a wide area. Many of these fragments were quickly collected by local residents and scientists.