The Quasicrystals — Discovery of One of the Rarest Meteorites in the World

Between Cosmo and Microcosm: An All-Italian Discovery of One of the Rarest Meteorites in the World, Fallen in Southern Italy… and it Contains an “Impossible” Material

A new and remarkable discovery in the field of planetary sciences has recently been unveiled by an all-Italian research team. It involves the finding of an extraordinarily rare meteorite containing extremely scarce aluminum and copper metal alloys and, even more intriguingly, material with a forbidden symmetry known as “quasicrystals.” This exceptional discovery has been detailed in an article published today in the journal Communications Earth & Environment, affiliated with the Nature-Portfolio group.

The research team, composed of members from the University of Bari, the University of Florence, and the Italian Space Agency, conducted the study on this peculiar meteorite, uncovering a series of unprecedented features in the realm of planetary science.

The meteorite was discovered on Mount Gariglione in Calabria by a passionate collector who noticed an unusual metallic sheen and decided to send the sample to experts at the University of Bari for further analysis. This discovery turned out to be a case of Citizen Science, highlighting the crucial role that enthusiasts and amateur observers can play in…