Thousands of meteorites fall to the Earth every year, but most are lost, either burning up in the atmosphere or landing and going unnoticed. If a meteorite does survive its landing, it can best be found on a large flat piece of land with uniform terrain, like Libya's Dar al Gani plateau. Here, hundreds of meteorites have been found, among them the Dar al Gani 400 lunar meteorite.

Lunar meteorites like Dar al Gani 400 were formed from massive impacts to the lunar surface that ejected material out into space, eventually falling to Earth. These samples can tell us a lot about the Moon and how it formed. In the case of Dar al Gani 400, analysis of its chemical makeup leads scientists to believe the material originated in the highlands on the far side of the Moon.

This specimen is a piece of the Dar al Gani 400 meteorite, found in 1998, a small piece of space rock that's traveled all the way from the Moon. Each of our Dar al Gani specimens have been photographed and listed separately. You can see all our currently available pieces in the collection below!

With its huge swaths of empty and uninhabited land, the Sahara is the perfect place for meteorites to hide. One region within it is known for being a plentiful source of meteorite discoveries: the Dar al Gani plateau. This one region’s output has had an immense impact on the world of meteorite collectors. To date, over 800 different meteorites have been found, weighing a sum of 1,515 pounds. Estimates put the find density on this plateau at around 1 discovery for every 2.5 square miles. 

There are several factors that add to the region's prolific amount of meteorite finds. First is the plateau’s geologic makeup. It consists of a brightly colored limestone which makes the dark gray of a meteorite’s fusion crust stand out against the ground. This bedrock is also lacking in quartz and consequently there is little sand present in the area. This keeps meteorites safe from wind abrasion and sandblasts. 

The hot and dry climate also lends itself to meteorite finding as what little water appears evaporates quickly, preventing any erosion. With these unique characteristics, the Dar al Gani plateau allows for the dark exterior of fallen meteorites to stay complete and makes them an easy spot for hunters searching the area.

Over billions of years, the outer layer of the Moon has taken a beating from meteorite impacts of its own. Without an atmosphere like on Earth, these impactors do not burn up or break apart which causes major damage to the surface. The pieces of rock and dust that are scattered after an impact are known as the regolith, and over time this material has covered the entire surface of the moon in a layer of loose sediments. 

Most meteorites from the Moon are made up of the lunar regolith, which can be ejected out of the Moon’s gravitational pull during a particularly strong impact event. This material is then drawn into Earth’s gravity and becomes a meteorite of its own.

Lunar meteorites like DaG 400 play an important role in understanding the formation of the Moon and other bodies in our solar system. The minerals found within them suggest the presence of igneous rocks, which is evidence of the Moon’s formation through an impact event on Earth. Such a powerful impactor would have given off enough heat to create lava oceans, which would then cool into the rocks found in meteorites today.