You Could Buy A Moon Piece For $1 Million

By , in News Sci/Tech on . Tagged width:

If you are looking for a special gift that will impress any person on this world, and you have the funds for it, you might consider getting some moon samples. This unusual lot will be auctioned at the Sotheby’s auction that will take place in New York.

It is a known fact that common persons aren’t allowed to have lunar samples, and these are the only ones which had a private owner, and documentation for it. They were dug back in September 1970 by Luna-16, a Russian mission, and they were found in the Crisium basin rim.

Once the samples reached our planet, Nina Ivanovna Koroleva received the samples. She was the widow of Sergei Pavlovich Korolev, who was previously the director of the Soviet space program.

Back in 1993, during another Sotheby’s New York auction, the samples were sold for $442,500, and the buyer remained anonymous. After 25 years, they are back for sale.

Expected price

The lunar samples should receive an incredible price, and experts expect between $700,000 and $1 million. That is because purchasing lunar samples is almost a unique occasion. Government entities usually own all lunar samples, and even the countries that received samples are not allowed by law to transfer them.

The auction will take place on November 29, but the public can preview the lot starting November 25. According to the tests, these lunar samples are around 3.4 billion years old and They have basaltic central fragment with feldspar crystals, surficial debris called regolith, and glass coatings. It was also revealed by tests that they contain more than 20 different elements.

The auction will also offer other materials as well, including space photography, art from Alan Bean, Chesley Bonestell and other artists, and items from the astronauts’ collections.

As our second lead editor, Anna C. Mackinno provides guidance on the stories Great Lakes Ledger reporters cover. She has been instrumental in making sure the content on the site is clear and accurate for our readers. If you see a particularly clever title, you can likely thank Anna. Anna received a BA and and MA from Fordham University.