Jackalsfontein
Seen to fall in 1903 in South Africa · 48 kg recovered · L6
Jackalsfontein is the heaviest of the 18 falls recorded in South Africa. It is the heaviest of the three L6 falls recorded in South Africa.
- Group
- L chondrites
- Recorded position
- 32.500° S, 21.900° E
The map is centred on Jackalsfontein. Rings every 200 km; numbers match the table below.
Nearest recorded falls
The closest recorded fall to Jackalsfontein is Wittekrantz, 103 km to the east. Within 250 km lie two other recorded falls.
| # | Fall | Year | Class | Recovered | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wittekrantz | 1880 | L5 | 2.2 kg | 103 km east |
| 2 | Cold Bokkeveld | 1838 | CM2 | 5.2 kg | 245 km west |
| 3 | Piquetberg | 1881 | H | 37 g | 301 km west |
| 4 | Diep River | 1906 | L6 | 1 kg | 340 km south-west |
| 5 | Molteno | 1953 | Howardite | 150 g | 453 km east |
| 6 | Witsand Farm | 1932 | LL4 | 66 g | 513 km north-west |
What L6 means
L6 is the label for an ordinary chondrite with low total iron, petrologic type 6, strongly heated on its parent body. By recovered mass Jackalsfontein ranks 19th of the 254 L6 falls. The nearest other L6 fall is Diep River in South Africa, 340 km away. In date order among L6 falls, the one before Jackalsfontein is Kamsagar (1902, India) and the one after is Rich Mountain (1903, the United States).
Jackalsfontein in South Africa’s record
In date order Jackalsfontein is number 6 (shared with a fall of the same year) of the 18 falls recorded in South Africa, which run from 1838 to 1973. The fall recorded before Jackalsfontein in South Africa is Piquetberg (1881); the next is St. Mark's (1903).
The 1900s
Jackalsfontein is one of 55 falls dated to the 1900s. Elsewhere, the record lists six other falls in 1903, among them Uberaba in Brazil, Dokachi in Bangladesh, Valdinizza in Italy.