Samelia is a IIIAB iron meteorite that fell the evening of May 20, 1921, in India.
In a 1924 publication, Sir Lewis Leigh Fermor (then acting director of the Geological Survey of India) described witness accounts of the meteorite’s fall:
“The fireball moved from south to north and left a white trail in the sky. At the end of the trail the fireball burst thundering like a volley of guns, and several pieces dropped down to the earth. . . . The white trail in the sky disappeared after a quarter of an hour”
In the Handbook of Iron Meteorites (1975), Buchwald describes the circumstances of the fall:
“Three masses were observed to fall in the Bhilwara district on May 20, 1921, at about 5:30 p.m. One mass, of 1125 g, fell in the Samelia jungle . . . another, of 587 g, in the Beshki jungle . . . and a third, of 750 g, in the village of Beskalai. All masses were recovered quickly and donated to the Geological Survey of India . . .”
In total, 2.46 kg (5.4 lb) of the iron meteorite were collected.
Photo © ASU Buseck Center for Meteorite Studies: This cut piece of the Samelia meteorite shows a fusion crusted edge, and measures approximately 2 cm in length.
