Burnwell, Kentucky facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Burnwell
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 Burnwell
Location in Kentucky
Burnwell
Location in the United States
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| Country | United States |
| State | Kentucky |
| County | Pike |
| Elevation | 709 ft (216 m) |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
| ZIP codes |
41518
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| GNIS feature ID | 507626 |
Burnwell is a small place in Pike County, Kentucky, United States. It is called an unincorporated community. This means it is a group of homes and businesses that is not part of an official city or town.
The Burnwell Meteorite
Something very exciting happened in Burnwell on September 4, 1990. A real space rock fell from the sky! This amazing event happened at 3:45 PM. The meteorite crashed right through the porch of Arthur and Frances Pegg's home.
The falling space rock made a horse and a goat very scared. Scientists later studied this special rock. They found it weighed 1504 grams, which is about 3.3 pounds. That's heavier than a typical school textbook!
What is a Meteorite?
A meteorite is a piece of rock or metal from space. It falls to Earth's surface. Most meteorites come from asteroids. Asteroids are rocky objects that orbit the Sun.
When a space rock enters Earth's atmosphere, it heats up. It often creates a bright streak of light. This streak is what we call a meteor, or a "shooting star." If the rock survives its fiery trip and lands on Earth, it becomes a meteorite.
Burnwell Meteorite Classification
The Burnwell meteorite was given a special name: "Burnwell." Scientists also classified it. They called it an "ordinary chondrite H4-an." This might sound complicated, but it tells us a lot about the rock.
- A chondrite is a type of stony meteorite. It has small, round grains inside called chondrules. These grains are very old. They formed at the beginning of our Solar System.
- The H means it has a high iron content.
- The 4 tells us how much it has been changed by heat. A 4 means it has been heated quite a bit.
- The -an means it is "anomalous." This means it has some unusual features. It is a bit different from other H4 chondrites.
Finding a meteorite is very rare. It is even rarer for one to hit a building! The Burnwell meteorite is a cool piece of space history. It reminds us of the amazing things in our universe.
