Ever looked up into the Pacific Northwest sky and seen a meteor fall? Ever wanted to own one?

Well, the largest piece of Mars on Earth, NWA 16788 (it really ought to have a jazzier name) is up for auction by Sotheby’s on July 16. The chunk is 14.75 by 11 by 6 inches, and weighs 54.388 pounds. 

Aside from being the largest piece of Mars — 70% larger than the next largest piece — this rock has another rarity factor: There are more than 77,000 officially recognized meteorites, but only 400 are Martian.

The Sotheby’s blurb says it was blasted off the Mars surface by a gargantuan asteroid strike. About a quarter of the meteorite is maskelynite glass, which was produced by heat and pressure when the asteroid struck.

After being blown into space, the rock traveled 140 million miles before crashing into, of all places, the Sahara Desert. It is amazing it was even found, but it was discovered in November 2023 by a meteorite hunter. 

Interested in having a large chunk of Mars? Better break out the penny jar. The opening bid is $1.6 million, and it’s expected to fetch between $2 and $4 million. (Meteor photo: Sotheby’s)