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Meteorite lands on home of Mrs Comette

Matthew Warren
Matthew Warren - [email protected]
Meteorite lands on home of Mrs Comette
NASA artist's animation (File)

A meteorite chose the roof of a house belonging to a Mrs Comette in the southern suburbs of Paris to make its acquaintance with the planet Earth.

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The astral surprise hit the roof of the home in Draveil while the Comettes themselves were on holiday. On returning they discovered the encounter after a water leak led them to the roof, reported newspaper France Soir.

"We got the roofer out and he was amazed" said Martine Comette. "He said you'd have to be superman to break a roof tile like that. It must be a meteorite."

The roofer was proved right when Alain Carion, a mineral scientist, authenticated the 88 gram meteorite. He described is as a "stone of black crusted rock which characterizes its passage through the atmosphere."

"This is super rare," he said. "There have been only 50 meteorite falls in France over the last four centuries."

The scientist believes the egg-shaped meteorite came from the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.

The meteorite that hit the Comettes was small-fry compared to some of the largest ever discovered. The biggest meteorite is believed to be the Hoba, a 60-tonne boulder which fell in Namibia around 80,000 years ago.

Meteorites can sell for up to €1,000 per gramme ($1,357), but the Comettes plan to keep hold of theirs.

"It's the history of life on Earth that fell in my garden," said Mrs Comette, "a bit of fascinating space history that we know nothing about."

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