{"product_id":"aletai-meteorite-widmanstatten-pattern","title":"Aletai Meteorite Widmanstätten Pattern Specimen","description":"\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003eThe Widmanstätten pattern is the definitive proof of iron meteorite authenticity — an interlocking crystal structure that forms only over millions of years of ultra-slow cooling inside an asteroid, impossible to replicate in any laboratory. In the Aletai meteorite, that pattern is even more remarkable: described by scientists as distinct from all other IIIE iron meteorites, it is a visual signature as unique as a fingerprint.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003eThe Aletai meteorite was first identified in 1898 under the name Armanty. Over the following century, additional fragments were recovered across Northern Xinjiang under different names — Xinjiang, Ulasitai — until their shared chemistry and mineralogy confirmed a single origin. In 2016, all known masses were formally unified as Aletai, after the Altay Prefecture in China. The fall created the largest meteorite strewn field ever recorded on Earth, stretching at least 430 kilometres, with total recovered mass exceeding 74 tonnes.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003eClassified as an anomalous IIIE coarse octahedrite unlike any known sample, the Aletai meteorite's complex mineralogy — kamacite, taenite, plessite, schreibersite, troilite, cohenite, haxonite, and daubréelite — along with its high cobalt, gold, and iridium content confirms a cosmic origin story unlike any other. The Widmanstätten pattern in this specimen is the visible expression of that extraordinary history.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe Specimen Details\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"padding-left: 40px;\" class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e✓ Meteorite Type:\u003c\/strong\u003e Anomalous IIIE Iron Meteorite (Coarse Octahedrite)\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"padding-left: 40px;\" class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e✓ Composition:\u003c\/strong\u003e Kamacite, Taenite, Plessite; elevated Cobalt, Gold \u0026amp; Iridium\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"padding-left: 40px;\" class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e✓ Accessory Minerals:\u003c\/strong\u003e Schreibersite, Troilite, Cohenite, Haxonite, Daubréelite\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"padding-left: 40px;\" class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e✓ Strewn Field:\u003c\/strong\u003e 430+ km — longest ever recorded on Earth\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"padding-left: 40px;\" class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e✓ Total Recovered Mass:\u003c\/strong\u003e Exceeds 74 tonnes\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"padding-left: 40px;\" class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e✓ Fall Location:\u003c\/strong\u003e Northern Xinjiang (Altay Prefecture), China\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"padding-left: 40px;\" class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e✓ First Identified:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1898 (as Armanty); formally named Aletai in 2016\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"padding-left: 40px;\" class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e✓ Specimen Size:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003cspan class=\"svelte-1fz0gqk\"\u003e≈29\u003c\/span\u003emm x 24mm x 18mm\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"padding-left: 40px;\" class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e✓ Weight:\u003c\/strong\u003e 46 gram\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003ci\u003eOwn an Aletai meteorite with a Widmanstätten pattern unlike any other — a scientifically unique specimen from the world's largest strewn field.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"ForeverGems_Tuc26","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45976572461252,"sku":"S416","price":1040.0,"currency_code":"ZAR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0273\/1599\/4699\/files\/S416AletaiMeteorite_1.webp?v=1774339254","url":"https:\/\/www.forevergems.co.za\/products\/aletai-meteorite-widmanstatten-pattern","provider":"ForeverGems_SA","version":"1.0","type":"link"}