What was the Ribbeck meteorite?
Ribbeck is a rare aubrite meteorite from asteroid 2024 BX1, which was discovered hours before it burned up over Germany on 21 January 2024.
On 20 January 2024, the Hungarian astronomer Krisztián Sárneczky discovered a small asteroid, later designated 2024 BX1, using a telescope at Piszkéstető Observatory in Hungary. Within hours, calculations showed it would strike Earth's atmosphere west of Berlin, Germany, only about three hours after discovery.
The fireball. At about 00:32 Central European Time on 21 January 2024, the asteroid, less than a metre across, entered the atmosphere and burned up as a bright fireball, seen and filmed by many people and cameras. It was the eighth asteroid to be discovered before impact.
The search. Using camera data, researchers calculated where fragments might have landed, near the village of Ribbeck, west of Berlin. Within days, searchers, including students and volunteers from several countries, found the first fragments. Dozens of pieces were recovered.
A rare type. Analysis showed that Ribbeck is an aubrite, a rare type of achondrite made mostly of nearly iron-free enstatite. Aubrites are pale and formed in very oxygen-poor conditions. Ribbeck is one of only a handful of witnessed aubrite falls.
Significance. Ribbeck links a meteorite type with an asteroid observed in space, allowing scientists to compare telescope observations of 2024 BX1 with the recovered rock. It also demonstrates the growing ability of sky surveys and international networks to predict impacts and recover meteorites rapidly.
Fresh material. Because fragments were recovered quickly and in winter, many are fresh, making them valuable for research.