Namibia is home to the most extensive meteorite shower on earth. Most of the meteors have fallen in an area south east of Gibeon and covers an area of 275 by 100km. Many of the specimens have been collected over the years and were never recorded but of the specimens that are recorded a total weight of the rocks is about 25 tons. When you head out on an exciting Namibia tour, the Gibeon Meteorite Shower has been the most vibrant of them all.
In 1838 James Alexander collected small pieces of the metal, roughly 2 feet square, and sent these pieces to a chemist in London for analysis. It was there that a chemist named John Herschel established that the fragments were in fact of meteorite origin.
The local Nama people had however been using these meteorites for a long time to make spear points and other weapons.
John Gibbs carried a meteorite of about 81kg by ox-wagon for 900km to Cape Town where it was then shipped to London. It was then sent to Massachusetts where it could be studied in detail. Dr Paul Range a geologist from Germany collected most of the remaining Meteorites he could find between 1911 and 1913. These bits were mapped. Some of these meteorites are on display in Windhoek while others were donated to museums around the world.
It has been estimated that a meteorite 4 x 4 x 1.5 meters entered the earth’s atmosphere, north westerly and at an angle of 10’ to 20’ from the horizon. It is believed that the meteorite fragmented while in the earth’s atmosphere, as the fragments themselves show signs of thermal alteration by melting of their surfaces. This left the fragments with either smooth surfaces or uneven as pieces of the rocks got pulled off by the drag of the atmosphere. This proves that the bits had an extended flight through the atmosphere before finding themselves deposited in Namibia. The shock induced microstructures on the Gibeon Meteorites are the greatest in the world.
The Gibeon Meteorites contain Iron as a main constituent with an average of 8% nickel, .5% cobalt, .04% phosphorus as well as small amount of carbon, sulphur, chromium, copper and zinc. Their size ranges from 1 ton to just a few grams.
The Gibeon Meteorites that stayed in Namibia can be viewed in Windhoek at the Post Street Mall and the smaller bits are at the museum of Geological Survey. Meteorite bits can still be found in the Gibeon area, but today you will need a metal detector to find them. These bits are protected by the law and it is illegal to remove them from their original site.