For a while, scientists have been unclear where the 70% of unknown meteoroids originated. Recently, scientists have discovered that most of Earth’s meteorites come from a few asteroid break ups. These collisions occurred from 5.8 to 40 million years ago, and have travelled through space for ages to join us on Earth.

The three asteroid families these meteorites came from are the Karin family, Koronis family and the Massalia family. The Karin family is a sub-group of the Koronis family and consists of at least 90 asteroids from the main asteroid belt. The Koronis family, also known as the Lacrimosa family, is an extremely large asteroid family of stony asteroids, located on the outer region of the asteroid belt. The Massalia family is a group of asteroids located on the inner asteroid belt. It consists of mainly stony asteroids.

There are three types of asteroids. The C-type(chondrite) asteroids are the most common type of asteroids, made up of clay and silicate rocks. The S-type(stony) asteroids are made up of silicate materials and nickel iron. The M-types(metallic) asteroids are made up of mainly nickel iron. The asteroids’ compositional differences are related to how far they are from the sun.

Before this breakthrough, scientists only knew of about 6% of meteorites’ origins. They believed this small number of meteorites came from the Moon, Mars, and, one of the largest objects in the main asteroid belt. This sits between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter, Vesta. Scientists were able to identify these rocks because they have samples of moon rocks, and are able to see Mars’ surface through the clouds.

This was an exciting discovery for scientists, who always wondered where these meteorites came from. If you wish to see a comet for yourself, there is a very rare comet shooting through the skies in the coming weeks, and it’s a once in a lifetime experience, so take a look at the best places and times to see the C/2024 G3.