Overview
- A fragment that pierced a Hillsborough, New Jersey roof was collected soon after it fell on July 16, 2024, and the homeowner’s careful preservation kept fragile salts and organics intact for study.
- Laboratory work published in Science Advances classifies the specimen as a rare CM1/2 carbonaceous chondrite, an intermediate type that records stronger water alteration than the more common CM2 meteorites.
- Scientists found high‑sodium salt phases and microscopic fillings left by evaporated brines, indicating near‑surface, concentrated salty fluids altered the parent rock before it broke off and reached Earth.
- The meteorite contains a broad suite of soluble organics and numerous amino acids, with carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios typical of CM meteorites and organic diversity comparable to or exceeding some returned asteroid samples.
- Trajectory reconstructions place the rock in the inner asteroid belt, some teams suggest a tentative link to the Erigone family, selected fragments were sent to the American Museum of Natural History, and further comparative studies are under way.