Orgueil (meteorite)#Curation and Distribution

The Orgueil meteorite fell on May 14, 1864, a few minutes after 20:00 local time, near Orgueil in southern France. About 20 stones fell over an area of 5-10 square kilometres. A specimen of the meteorite was analyzed that same year by François Stanislaus Clöez, professor of chemistry at the Musée d'Histoire Naturelle, who focused on the organic matter found in this meteorite. He wrote that it contained carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, and its composition was very similar to peat from the Somme valley or to the lignite of Ringkohl near Kassel. An intense scientific discussion ensued, continuing into the 1870s, as to whether the organic matter might have a biological origin.{{cite book |title=Cosmic Debris: Meteorites in History |last=Burke |first=John G. |year=1986 |publisher=University of California Press |location=Berkeley and Los Angeles, California |isbn=0-520-05651-5 |pages=168–169}}

Orgueil specimens are in curation by bodies around the world. Given the large mass, samples are in circulation for nondestructive{{cite journal |last1=Alfing |first1=J. |last2=Patzek |first2=M. |last3=Bischoff |first3=A. |title=Modal abundances of coarse-grained (>5 μm) components within CI-chondrites and their individual clasts – Mixing of various lithologies on the CI parent body(ies) |journal=Geochemistry |date=2019 |volume=79 |issue=4 |page=125532|doi=10.1016/j.chemer.2019.08.004 |s2cid=202041205 |doi-access=free }} (and with sufficient justification, destructive{{cite journal |last1=King |first1=A. J. |last2=Solomon |first2=J. R. |last3=Schofield |first3=P. F. |last4=Russell |first4=S. S. |author4-link=Sara Russell |title=Characterising the CI and CI-like carbonaceous chondrites using thermogravimetric analysis and infrared spectroscopy |journal=Earth, Planets and Space |date=2015 |volume=67 |page=198|doi=10.1186/s40623-015-0370-4 |bibcode=2015EP&S...67..198K |s2cid=2148318 |doi-access=free |hdl=10141/622224 |hdl-access=free }}{{cite journal |last1=Hoover |first1=R. B. |last2=Frontasyeva |first2=M. |last3=Pavlov |first3=S. |title=Epithermal Neutron Activation Analysis of Carbonaceous Chondrites and the Polonnaruwa/Aralaganwila Stones |journal=Aspects in Mining & Mineral Science |date=2020 |volume=6 |issue=1 |doi=10.31031/AMMS.2020.06.000626|s2cid=234569506 |doi-access=free }}{{cite journal |last1=Kareta |first1=T. |last2=Reddy |first2=V. |last3=Pearson |first3=N. |last4=Sanchez |first4=J. A. |last5=Harris |first5=W. M. |title=Investigating the Relationship between (3200) Phaethon and (155140) 2005 UD through Telescopic and Laboratory Studies |journal= The Planetary Science Journal|date=2021 |volume=2 |issue=5 |page=190 |doi=10.3847/PSJ/ac1bad|arxiv=2109.01020 |bibcode=2021PSJ.....2..190K |s2cid=237386542 |doi-access=free }}) study and test.

Source: Grady, M. M. Catalogue of Meteorites, 5th Edition, Cambridge University Press

File:Vial of presolar grains in suspension.jpg

Orgueil is one of five known meteorites belonging to the CI chondrite group (see meteorites classification), and is the largest ({{convert|14|kg}}). This group has a composition that is essentially identical to that of the sun, excluding gaseous elements like hydrogen and helium. Notably though, the Orgueil meteor is highly enriched in (volatile) mercury - undetectable in the solar photosphere, and this is a major driver of the "mercury paradox" that mercury abundances in meteors do not follow its volatile nature and isotopic ratios based expected behaviour in the solar nebula.Lauretta, D.S., Devouard, B., Buseck, P.R., (1999). The cosmochemical behavior of mercury. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 171, 35-47Meier, M.M.M., Cloquet, C., Marty, B., (2015). Mercury (Hg) in meteorites: Variations in abundance, thermal release profile, mass-dependent and mass-independent isotopic fractionation. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 182, 55–72

Because of its extraordinarily primitive composition and relatively large mass, Orgueil is one of the most-studied meteorites. One notable discovery in Orgueil was a high concentration of isotopically anomalous xenon called "xenon-HL". The carrier of this gas is extremely fine-grained diamond dust that is older than the Solar System itself, known as presolar grains.

In 1962, Nagy et al. announced the discovery of 'organised elements' embedded in the Orgueil meteorite that were purportedly biological structures of extraterrestrial origin. These elements were subsequently shown to be either pollen (including that of ragwort) and fungal spores (Fitch & Anders, 1963) that had contaminated the sample, or crystals of the mineral olivine.

In 1965, a fragment of the Orgueil meteorite, kept in a sealed glass jar in Montauban since its discovery, was found to have a seed capsule embedded in it, whilst the original glassy layer on the outside remained apparently undisturbed.{{cite web|url=http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/hoax/archive/permalink/the_orgueil_meteorite|title=The Orgueil Meteorite, 1864|publisher=The Museum of Hoaxes|access-date=2023-01-08|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140728162449/http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/hoax/archive/permalink/the_orgueil_meteorite|archivedate=2014-07-28}} Despite great initial excitement, the seed capsule was shown to be that of a European rush, glued into the fragment and camouflaged using coal dust. The outer "fusion layer" was in fact glue. Whilst the perpetrator is unknown, it is thought that the hoax was aimed at influencing 19th century debate on spontaneous generation by demonstrating the transformation of inorganic to biological matter.

{{Main|Journal of Cosmology#Hoover paper controversy}}

Richard B. Hoover of NASA has claimed that the Orgueil meteorite contains fossils, some of which are similar to known terrestrial species.{{cite journal | url=http://sdcc3.ucsd.edu/~ir118/Leiden2010/Hoover_JOC_MS.pdf | journal=Journal of Cosmology | year= 2011 | volume= 13 | title=Fossils of Cyanobacteria in CI1 Carbonaceous Meteorites: Implications to Life on Comets, Europa, and Enceladus | first=Richard B. |last=Hoover| access-date=2011-03-05}} Hoover has previously claimed the existence of fossils in the Murchison meteorite. NASA has formally distanced itself from Hoover's claims and his lack of expert peer-reviews.{{cite news |author=Kerry Sheridan |date=March 7, 2011 |title=NASA shoots down alien fossil claims |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-03-08/nasa-shoots-down-alien-fossil-claims/2666046 |access-date=2011-03-07 |work=ABC News}}

• Glossary of meteoritics

{{Reflist}}

• Nagy B, Claus G, Hennessy DJ (1962) Organic Particles Embedded in Minerals in Orgueil and Ivuna Carbonaceous Chondrites. Nature 193 (4821) p. 1129
• Fitch FW, Anders E (1963) Organized Element - Possible Identification in Orgueil Meteorite. Science 140 (357) p. 1097
• Gilmour I, Wright I, Wright J 'Origins of Earth and Life', The Open University, 1997, {{ISBN|0-7492-8182-0}}

• [http://www.daviddarling.info/encyclopedia/O/Orgueil.html The Orgueil meteorite from The Encyclopedia of Astrobiology, Astronomy, and Spaceflight]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20130529063633/http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/orgueil.html The Orgueil meteorite hoax]
• {{Cite web|url=https://www.si.edu/object/nmnhmineralsciences_1017941|title=Orgueil|website=Smithsonian Institution|language=en|access-date=2020-02-27}}

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