{"id":16642,"date":"2022-12-05T23:28:28","date_gmt":"2022-12-05T23:28:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/?p=16642"},"modified":"2025-10-19T01:53:02","modified_gmt":"2025-10-19T01:53:02","slug":"at-least-two-new-minerals-in-the-el-ali-meteorite","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/at-least-two-new-minerals-in-the-el-ali-meteorite\/","title":{"rendered":"At least two new minerals in the El Ali meteorite"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>The meteorite was identified as a celestial object in 2020 near the town of El Ali, Somalia&#8217;s Hiiraan region, and has since attracted onlookers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"gtech-migrated-from-ad-inserter-placement-2\" style=\"text-align: center;\" id=\"gtech-3534976000\"><div style=\"margin-right: auto;margin-left: auto;text-align: center;\" id=\"gtech-1386814541\"><a data-bid=\"1\" data-no-instant=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/linkout\/75343\" rel=\"noopener\" class=\"notrack\" aria-label=\"jesdphis\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/media\/2025\/08\/jesdphis.avif\" alt=\"\"  srcset=\"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/media\/2025\/08\/jesdphis.avif 1179w, https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/media\/2025\/08\/jesdphis-768x950.avif 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1179px) 100vw, 1179px\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\"  style=\"display: inline-block;\" \/><\/a><\/div><\/div><p>The El Ali meteorite; also known as <strong>Nightfall<\/strong> is a 15.2 ton meteorite that was known to the local population in Somalia for generations, but first scientifically identified in 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Scientists at the University of Alberta, Canada, have identified at least two new minerals in the El Ali meteorite. A third is under investigation. The discovery was presented at the Space Exploration Symposium.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Possessing a sample of the &#8220;rock,&#8221; researchers at the University of Alberta have identified minerals never seen naturally on Earth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Scientists at the University of Alberta, Canada, have identified at least two new minerals in the <a href=\"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/i\/el-ali-meteorite\/\" data-type=\"post_tag\" data-id=\"1818\">El Ali meteorite<\/a>. A third is under investigation. The discovery was presented at the Space Exploration Symposium.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The meteorite was identified as a celestial object in 2020 near the town of El Ali, Somalia&#8217;s Hiiraan region, and has since attracted onlookers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Possessing a sample of the &#8220;rock,&#8221; researchers at the University of Alberta have identified minerals never seen naturally on Earth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Scientists at the University of Alberta, Canada, have identified at least two new minerals in the El Ali meteorite. A third is under investigation. The discovery was presented atthe Space Exploration Symposium.<\/p><div class=\"gtech-mid-cont\" style=\"text-align: center;\" id=\"gtech-2365698358\"><div style=\"margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;text-align: center;\" id=\"gtech-2399442824\"><a data-bid=\"1\" data-no-instant=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/linkout\/78735\" rel=\"noopener\" class=\"notrack\" aria-label=\"005\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/media\/2026\/03\/005.webp\" alt=\"\"  srcset=\"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/media\/2026\/03\/005.webp 1000w, https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/media\/2026\/03\/005-768x768.webp 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" width=\"500\" height=\"500\"  style=\"display: inline-block;\" \/><\/a><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>The meteorite was identified as a celestial object in 2020 near the town of El Ali, Somalia&#8217;s Hiiraan region, and has since attracted onlookers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Possessing a sample of the &#8220;rock,&#8221; researchers at the University of Alberta have identified minerals never seen naturally on Earth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure data-wp-context=\"{&quot;imageId&quot;:&quot;69e860d8ccd88&quot;}\" data-wp-interactive=\"core\/image\" data-wp-key=\"69e860d8ccd88\" class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large has-custom-border is-style-default wp-lightbox-container\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"432\" height=\"300\" data-wp-class--hide=\"state.isContentHidden\" data-wp-class--show=\"state.isContentVisible\" data-wp-init=\"callbacks.setButtonStyles\" data-wp-on--click=\"actions.showLightbox\" data-wp-on--load=\"callbacks.setButtonStyles\" data-wp-on-window--resize=\"callbacks.setButtonStyles\" src=\"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/media\/2022\/12\/g221128-432x300.jpg\" alt=\"The El Ali meteorite\" class=\"wp-image-16646\" style=\"border-radius:15px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/media\/2022\/12\/g221128-432x300.jpg 432w, https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/media\/2022\/12\/g221128-86x60.jpg 86w, https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/media\/2022\/12\/g221128-768x533.jpg 768w, https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/media\/2022\/12\/g221128-1536x1065.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/media\/2022\/12\/g221128-2048x1421.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 432px) 100vw, 432px\" \/><button\n\t\t\tclass=\"lightbox-trigger\"\n\t\t\ttype=\"button\"\n\t\t\taria-haspopup=\"dialog\"\n\t\t\taria-label=\"Enlarge\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-init=\"callbacks.initTriggerButton\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-on--click=\"actions.showLightbox\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-style--right=\"state.imageButtonRight\"\n\t\t\tdata-wp-style--top=\"state.imageButtonTop\"\n\t\t>\n\t\t\t<svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"12\" height=\"12\" fill=\"none\" viewBox=\"0 0 12 12\">\n\t\t\t\t<path fill=\"#fff\" d=\"M2 0a2 2 0 0 0-2 2v2h1.5V2a.5.5 0 0 1 .5-.5h2V0H2Zm2 10.5H2a.5.5 0 0 1-.5-.5V8H0v2a2 2 0 0 0 2 2h2v-1.5ZM8 12v-1.5h2a.5.5 0 0 0 .5-.5V8H12v2a2 2 0 0 1-2 2H8Zm2-12a2 2 0 0 1 2 2v2h-1.5V2a.5.5 0 0 0-.5-.5H8V0h2Z\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/svg>\n\t\t<\/button><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The El Ali meteorite<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Two Discoveries <\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The two newly discovered minerals have been named elaliite and elkinstantonite. The first receives its name from the meteorite itself, dubbed the \u201c<strong>El Ali<\/strong>\u201d meteorite because it was found in near the town of El Ali, in the Hiiraan region of <a href=\"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/i\/somalia\/\" data-type=\"post_tag\" data-id=\"1816\">Somalia<\/a>. Herd named the second mineral after Lindy Elkins-Tanton, vice president of the ASU Interplanetary Initiative, professor at Arizona State University\u2019s School of Earth and Space Exploration and principal investigator of NASA\u2019s upcoming Psyche mission.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cLindy has done a lot of work on how the cores of planets form, how these iron nickel cores form, and the closest analogue we have are iron meteorites. So it made sense to name a mineral after her and recognize her contributions to science,\u201d Herd explains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In collaboration with researchers at UCLA and the California Institute of Technology, Herd classified the El Ali meteorite as an \u201cIron, IAB complex\u201d meteorite, one of over 350 in that particular category.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What this means<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>For scientists, this is an opportunity to study and classify the new elements, which may in the future have practical uses in our daily lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But there may be a problem for the advancement of research: El Ali is &#8220;missing&#8221;. After being classified as a celestial object, there was a movement for the commercialization of the meteorite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The El Ali Meteorite: Ancient History and New Minerals<\/h2>\n\n\n<!--presto-player:video_id=4--><figure class=\"wp-block-video presto-block-video  presto-provider-self-hosted\" style=\"--plyr-color-main: var(--presto-player-highlight-color, #0c4c8a); --presto-player-logo-width: 132px; \">\n\t<presto-player 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08:01:03&quot;,&quot;deleted_at&quot;:&quot;&quot;}'\n\t\tbranding='{&quot;logo&quot;:&quot;https:\\\/\\\/gtechbooster.com\\\/media\\\/2025\\\/01\\\/logo-wshd.svg&quot;,&quot;color&quot;:&quot;#0c4c8a&quot;,&quot;logo_width&quot;:132,&quot;player_css&quot;:&quot;&quot;}'\n\t\tchapters='[]'\n\t\toverlays='[]'\n\t\ttracks='[]'\n\t\tblock-attributes='{&quot;playsInline&quot;:true,&quot;id&quot;:4,&quot;attachment_id&quot;:null,&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https:\\\/\\\/www.ualberta.ca\\\/institute-for-space-science-exploration-and-technology\\\/media-library\\\/symposium2022-videos\\\/herd.mp4&quot;,&quot;preset&quot;:1,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;https:\\\/\\\/www.ualberta.ca\\\/institute-for-space-science-exploration-and-technology\\\/media-library\\\/symposium2022-videos\\\/herd.mp4&quot;}'\n\t\tanalytics=''\n\t\tautomations\t\tprovider='self-hosted'\n\t\t\t\tid=\"presto-player-1\"\n\t\tsrc=\"https:\/\/www.ualberta.ca\/institute-for-space-science-exploration-and-technology\/media-library\/symposium2022-videos\/herd.mp4\"\n\t\tmedia-title=\"https:\/\/www.ualberta.ca\/institute-for-space-science-exploration-and-technology\/media-library\/symposium2022-videos\/herd.mp4\"\n\t\tcss=\"\"\n\t\tclass=\"presto-video-id-4 presto-preset-id-1 skin-modern\"\n\t\tskin=\"modern\" \n\t\ticon-url=\"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/difogon\/img\/sprite.svg\" \n\t\tpreload=\"\" \n\t\tposter=\"\"\n\t\tyoutube=\"{&quot;noCookie&quot;:false,&quot;channelId&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;show_count&quot;:false}\"\n\t\tprovider-video-id=\"\"\n\t\tvideo-id=\"4\"\n\t\t\t\tplaysinline \n\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t            <video controls preload=\"none\">\n            <source src=\"https:\/\/www.ualberta.ca\/institute-for-space-science-exploration-and-technology\/media-library\/symposium2022-videos\/herd.mp4\" \/>\n        <\/video>\n    \n\n\t<\/presto-player>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n<p class=\"cls has-palette-color-2-color has-palette-color-1-background-color has-text-color has-background has-link-color wp-elements-c89a72bc5ddb572cec8214f1f3dff20d\">The researchers hope that more fragments will be made available for study, contributing to science increasingly understanding the formation of celestial objects, and perhaps understanding how planets form.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h6 class=\"wp-block-heading\">More Information \u2139<\/h6>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>https:\/\/www.lpi.usra.edu\/meteor\/metbull.php?code=74444<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div class=\"gtech-end-cont\" id=\"gtech-1948817541\"><div style=\"margin-right: auto;margin-left: auto;text-align: center;\" id=\"gtech-1311983455\"><a data-bid=\"1\" data-no-instant=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/linkout\/75343\" rel=\"noopener\" class=\"notrack\" aria-label=\"jesdphis\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/media\/2025\/08\/jesdphis.avif\" alt=\"\"  srcset=\"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/media\/2025\/08\/jesdphis.avif 1179w, https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/media\/2025\/08\/jesdphis-768x950.avif 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1179px) 100vw, 1179px\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\"  style=\"display: inline-block;\" \/><\/a><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The meteorite was identified as a celestial object in 2020 near the town of El Ali, Somalia&#8217;s Hiiraan region, and has since attracted onlookers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":16645,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1647],"tags":[1817,1818,1854,1816,1287],"class_list":["post-16642","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-science","tag-canada","tag-el-ali-meteorite","tag-meteorite","tag-somalia","tag-united-states"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":6}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/api-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16642","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/api-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/api-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/api-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/api-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16642"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/api-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16642\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/api-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16645"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/api-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16642"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/api-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16642"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gtechbooster.com\/api-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16642"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}