Meteorites in Physics Laboratory

Abstract

A proposal for a physics laboratory inserted in an interdisciplinary learning path for characterizing meteorites is described. Small meteorites are characterized both qualitatively through magnetic properties and quantitatively with density measurements. Of particular interest is the open problem of measuring an object with a small volume and an irregular shape. From the measurements of immersion in water, which are often very difficult due to the lack of adequate instruments in laboratory, it is possible to face a concrete experimental problem that leads to unusual indirect measurements.