A rare meteorite reveals a lost moon-sized world

In 2019, a one-pound volcanic rock was discovered in the Sahara Desert, carrying a chemical signature unlike anything found on Earth or Mars. Known as Northwest Africa 12774, this meteorite belongs to a rare group called angrites, which are among the oldest volcanic stones in the solar system. While most space rocks of this type were thought to come from small asteroids, the crystals inside this specific fragment tell a much more massive story.