Meteorite Pallasit Pallasovka – Russia

The Pallasovka meteorite is a rare stony-iron meteorite of the pallasite type, discovered in July 1990 in Russia. It was found on the shore of an artificial water reservoir about 27 kilometers from the town of Pallasovka in the Volgograd region. It was a single stone weighing 198 kilograms, discovered by a local resident N. F. Charitonov. A sample was later brought to the Vernadsky Institute in Moscow by geologist A. E. Milanovsky.

The town of Pallasovka is named after the notable naturalist Peter Pallas, who in the 18th century contributed to the research of the first known pallasite found near Krasnoyarsk. The entire group of these meteorites is named after him.

Pallasovka is composed approximately half of olivine—a translucent greenish-yellow mineral—and half of metallic iron-nickel. Its surface is distinctly covered with a dark brown fusion crust with regmaglypts, dimples formed during atmospheric entry.

Pallasovka belongs to the main group of pallasites, the most common subgroup of this rare meteorite type. Its composition matches well with other members of the group, but it does show some differences, for example in the chemical composition of chromite. Chemically, it contains nickel, cobalt, iridium, gold, platinum, gallium, and germanium, as well as minerals such as troilite, schreibersite, and chromite.

Currently, part of the meteorite is held in scientific collections, such as at the Vernadsky Institute.