Meteorites & Tektites

Concho Meteorite

Concho meteorite found in Concho, Texas.

NOTE: The Non-vertebrate Paleontology Lab does not identify or conduct analyses on possible meteorites or tektites. If you believe that you are in possession of either a meteorite or tektite, we suggest that you contact others near where you are located, such as a local gem and mineral club.

Want to know more?

Meteorites and tektites have different features and properties. For meteorite information and identification see:

 

Tektites have been found in strewn fields and linked to impact crater events –  https://www.tektites.info/strewnfields.  The tektites known from Texas are called bediasites and they have been linked to an impact event forming the Chesapeake Crater.

See also the following links:

 

There is also a flame test to confirm if a rock is a tektite https://www.meteorite-times.com/tektite-testing-revisited/

Our Collections

The research collections of F. Earl Ingerson and the more extensive collection of Virgil E. Barnes form the core of this material.

Meteorites

Collections include meteorites acquired during the early geological surveys of the State of Texas, and those added since that time for both research or display. Especially prominent are the collections from the Works Progress Administration (WPA) project at the Odessa impact site, directed by E.H. Sellards and overseen in the field by Glen L. Evans.

The Catalogue of Meteorites is the database of all meteorite falls and finds. It is published by the Natural History Museum in London, UK. If you search that database for the Concho meteorite (shown above) you can find details about the meteorite.

Tektites

The research collections of F. Earl Ingerson and the more extensive collection of Virgil E. Barnes form the core of this material. The Virgil E. Barnes Tektite Collection contains specimens collected by Dr. Barnes over the course of his career, from localities throughout the world. The collection currently contains about 2000 uniquely identified specimens, consisting of over 7000 individual pieces. These specimens consist of Australites, Libyan Glass, Moldavites, Indochinites (from China, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam), Ivory Coast Tektites, Philippinites, and Bedasites. In addition to actual specimens, the collection includes comparison materials, source rock samples, as well as additional materials used in Dr. Barnes’ tektite research.

See examples of tektites in our collections.

Other Impact Related

These are rocks that have been affected by an impact at, or close to, the impact site. Shatter cones, impact glass, other than tektites, and impact breccias are included. The collections contain quantities of brecciated rocks from the Odessa impact site (the WPA project, Sellards and Evans) and material from various impact sites collected by Virgil Barnes.