SPRING, Texas — A meteorite that exploded over the Houston area last month, sending fragments crashing into at least one local home, is now being examined by scientists at Rice University who say the space rocks could hold secrets to the origins of our solar system.
The meteor, which NASA said weighed about a ton, created a fireball and a loud boom over the Houston area last month. One piece punched through the roof of Sherry James’ home in the Spring area, leaving her with what you might call an out-of-this-world souvenir.
Some of the recovered fragments have since been donated to Rice University, where scientist Bidong Zhang and his colleagues are treating them like the priceless treasures they say they are — keeping them locked up and studying them under powerful microscopes to determine their composition…