ROM

Royal Ontario Museum - Toronto

ROM Meteorite Collection

"Through the Looking Glass"

We arrived in Toronto May 31st during a late spring heat wave. We made our way into the city centre; destination - the Royal Ontario Museum.

The ROM is a world class museum with a very impressive collection of meteorites. It holds a number of unique and important Canadian and Ontario meteorites, as well as international space rocks including lunar and Martian specimens.

Next, to Grimsby

Springwater

This 52 kg mass was the largest piece of the Springwater pallasite meteorite, found by expert meteorite hunters in 2009 at the original 1931 discovery site. The ROM was able to acquire this amazing piece from the finder.

The ROM holds the main masses of all three Canadian pallasites !

More info

Bruderheim, Alberta

Abee

This very rare carbonaceous chondrite meteorite was recovered after a witnessed fireball ( Jan 18, 2000 ) with loud explosions which left dust trails.

Several fragments totalling 1 kg were found shortly after, frozen on the surface of Tagish Lake in northern B.C. Specimens were carefully collected. Over 500 other pieces were found over the next few months totalling around 10 kg.

Tagish Lake is believed to be derived from an asteroid, possibly the 92 km diameter asteroid 773 Irmintraud.

Carbonaceous chondrites contain organic compounds such as amino acids. Tagish Lake also contains nano-diamonds !

Other pieces are at U of Alberta, U of Calgary and Western University.

Tagish Lake, BC

Giroux and Southampton

These are the two other Canadian pallasites. Giroux was found in Manitoba in 1953, and Southampton was found by a man walking on a Lake Huron beach in 2001.

Pallasites are felt to be from the transition zone between the mantle and metal core of ancient asteroids.

The Hagersville, Ontario iron meteorite, 30 kg, found by a man clearing rocks from a farmer's field in 1999.

Over to Hagersville

20 ROM: About

Manitouwabing, Ontario

Found in 1962, the cut section of this 39 kg find shows a Widmanstatten pattern common to octohedrite iron meteorites.

More about Manitouwabing

Manitouwabing

Osseo, Ontario - Iron - A mass of 46.3 kg was found in 1931.

Welland, Ontario - Iron - This 8.2 kg meteorite was found in 1888, again by a farmer plowing a field. The main mass was put aside, only to later be re-discovered in a "pile of old iron inside a disused stove" (Buchwald).

Shelburne, Ontario - This L5 chondrite was recovered after a witnessed fall in 1904.

Dresden, Ontario - This H6 chondrite was from a spectacular witnessed fireball in 1939 ( see Western Univ section for more info).

Read about "Mud-Slinging Shelburne" in Meteorite Times

Peace River

This L6 chondrite meteorite fell on March 31, 1963, in northwest Alberta.

A bright flash was witnessed at a distance of over 100 miles and explosions were heard.

The first piece was recovered on April 24.

St-Robert

Quebec, 1994. Chondrite

Photo credit Hannah Garratt July 2023

On the Trail of the Great Canadian Meteorites

ROM

ROM Meteorite Collection

Springwater

This 52 kg mass was the largest piece of the Springwater pallasite meteorite, found by expert meteorite hunters in 2009 at the original 1931 discovery site. The ROM was able to acquire this amazing piece from the finder.

The ROM holds the main masses of all three Canadian pallasites !

Bruderheim, Alberta

Tagish Lake, BC

Giroux and Southampton

The Hagersville, Ontario iron meteorite, 30 kg, found by a man clearing rocks from a farmer's field in 1999.

Manitouwabing, Ontario

Osseo, Ontario - Iron - A mass of 46.3 kg was found in 1931.

Welland, Ontario - Iron - This 8.2 kg meteorite was found in 1888, again by a farmer plowing a field. The main mass was put aside, only to later be re-discovered in a "pile of old iron inside a disused stove" (Buchwald).

Shelburne, Ontario - This L5 chondrite was recovered after a witnessed fall in 1904.

Dresden, Ontario - This H6 chondrite was from a spectacular witnessed fireball in 1939 ( see Western Univ section for more info).

Peace River

Photos by Dave Kenny, used courtesy of the ROM (Royal Ontario Museum), Toronto, Canada. ©ROM

ROM

ROM Meteorite Collection

Springwater

This 52 kg mass was the largest piece of the Springwater pallasite meteorite, found by expert meteorite hunters in 2009 at the original 1931 discovery site. The ROM was able to acquire this amazing piece from the finder.

​

The ROM holds the main masses of all three Canadian pallasites !

Bruderheim, Alberta

Tagish Lake, BC

Giroux and Southampton

The Hagersville, Ontario iron meteorite, 30 kg, found by a man clearing rocks from a farmer's field in 1999.

Manitouwabing, Ontario

Osseo, Ontario - Iron - A mass of 46.3 kg was found in 1931.

​

Welland, Ontario - Iron - This 8.2 kg meteorite was found in 1888, again by a farmer plowing a field. The main mass was put aside, only to later be re-discovered in a "pile of old iron inside a disused stove" (Buchwald).

Shelburne, Ontario - This L5 chondrite was recovered after a witnessed fall in 1904. Dresden, Ontario - This H6 chondrite was from a spectacular witnessed fireball in 1939 ( see Western Univ section for more info).

Peace River

Photos by Dave Kenny, used courtesy of the ROM (Royal Ontario Museum), Toronto, Canada. ©ROM

Shelburne, Ontario - This L5 chondrite was recovered after a witnessed fall in 1904.

Dresden, Ontario - This H6 chondrite was from a spectacular witnessed fireball in 1939 ( see Western Univ section for more info).