A cherry tomato-sized meteorite crashed through the roof of a home in McDonough, Georgia, in June, revealing it is 20 million years older than Earth. According to University of Georgia planetary geologist Scott Harris, he determined this after examining fragments from the meteorite.
The fragments, weighing only 23 grams, were provided by the homeowner and showed signs of coming from an ancient meteorite that formed approximately 4.56 billion years ago – nearly 20 million years before Earth’s estimated age of 4.54 billion years.
Harris linked this meteor to a group of asteroids in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, which he believes broke apart about 470 million years ago.
This discovery comes as the team plans to submit their findings to the Meteorological Society’s nomenclature committee for official recognition. The meteorite will be named the McDonough Meteorite, making it the 27th recovered in Georgia’s history.
Harris emphasized that analyzing such space rocks is crucial for understanding potential threats from larger, more perilous asteroids. “One day there will be an opportunity, and we never know when it’s going to be, for something large to hit and create a catastrophic situation,” he said.
The incident occurred at approximately 12:30 pm, causing a boom and rattling houses across Atlanta. The meteorite hurtled through the air, emitting a fiery fireball visible from North and South Carolina before crashing into the home’s roof.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/11/fireball-mcdonough-meteorite-atlanta-home