The Allende Meteorite
One night in 1969, a fireball broke up over northern Mexico and scattered stones older than the Earth itself.
What was reported
Just after 1 am on 8 February 1969, a brilliant fireball lit up the sky over northern Mexico and broke apart, scattering thousands of stones over a wide area around the village of Pueblito de Allende in Chihuahua.
Over two tonnes of fragments were collected. Scientists, preparing for the return of the first Moon rocks that year, studied them intensively.
Explanations offered
Allende contains small white grains that are among the oldest solid material in the solar system, about 4.57 billion years old, formed before the Earth itself. It has been one of the most studied meteorites in history, and taught scientists much about how the planets formed.
- When
- 8 February 1969
- Where
- Pueblito de Allende, Chihuahua, Mexico
- Witnesses
- Residents across northern Mexico
- Status
- Confirmed
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.