Introduction to Meterorites – CANCELLED

Sorry, this event has been cancelled

Have you been fascinated with meteorites! Would you like to learn more about them? This class is for you!
Please join Roberto Vargas for a class on Intro to Meteorites

I will be discussing:
Where meteorites come from and how we know where they come from and the different kinds of meteorites
*The process of classification
*Meteorite features
*Tektites
*My meteorite hunting expeditions ( and more…)

I will also have a show and tell portion, in which I will be showing off pieces of the following meteorites:
Esquel: Also known as the queen of pallasites Aguas Zarcas: Carbonaceous meteorite fall
Allende: Another carbonaceous meteorite that contains material older than our sun/solar system
Campo Del Cielo: Iron meteorite found in Argentina

Punggur: First meteorite fall of 2021, the only meteorite classified as an H7 melt breccia
*I will also be showing off pieces of the moon and mars (Lunar and Martian meteorites from Northwest Africa) and more.

At the end, I will give one lucky attendee a free
Class date: October 7th Thursday
Time: 6:30-8:30 PM
Cost $20

Bio:
My name is Roberto Vargas, I am a meteorite collector, dealer, and amatuer hunter. I am also a member of the International Meteorite Collectors Association. My journey with
meteorites began in November of 2017 when I purchased my first meteorite, a modest 20g Campo del Cielo crystal. Prior to that, I did not believe you could own something that had been in space. I had acquired my first piece of moldavite in 2005, but back then, I had no idea how big of an impact meteorites would have in my life (excuse the pun).

Accomplishments:
In 2019, a meteorite fall was reported in Costa Rica. I flew out three days after the fall and was able to bring back around a kilogram of fresh meteorites. This meteorite was scientifically significant because it was a rare type of meteorite known as a carbonaceous chondrite, which was found to have amino acids, the building blocks of life.
In 2020, I was involved in the recovery of the Kolang meteorite fall in Indonesia. While traveling to the site was restricted due to Covid, I was able to coordinate recovery efforts remotely and my team and I recovered almost all of it, a piece of which I sold to the American Museum of Natural History in New York.

In 2020, another meteorite fell in Brazil. I was able to fly there and bring back material, being the first to make the material available to the general public. I have also submitted a number of finds from Northwest Africa, which have been published and some that are in the process classified. In January of this year there was another fall in Indonesia. I was able to recover the main mass and my team and I donated pieces to Arizona State University. It was found to be the only meteorite classified as an H7 Melt Breccia (I will discuss classification further in the class)