4.5-Billion-Year-Old Meteorite Crashes Into Georgia Man's Home

The McDonough Meteorite is 20 million years older than Earth itself.

Published on Mar. 6, 2026

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A meteorite that crashed into a home in McDonough, Georgia, has been found to be 4.56 billion years old - 20 million years older than Earth. The cherry-tomato-sized fragment broke off from a massive asteroid that formed before our planet, and its trajectory and velocity could provide insights into guarding against larger asteroid impacts.

Why it matters

This rare meteorite impact provides a unique opportunity for researchers to study the origins and history of our solar system. The McDonough Meteorite's age and the circumstances of its crash landing could help scientists better understand the formation of asteroids and how to potentially protect against future asteroid threats to Earth.

The details

The meteorite fragment crashed through the roof and HVAC duct of a home in McDonough, Georgia, on June 26, 2025, leaving a dent in the living room floor. University of Georgia planetary geologist Scott Harris examined the specimens and determined the meteorite broke off from a massive asteroid that formed 20 million years before Earth, making it 4.56 billion years old. The meteorite is classified as a Low Metal (L type) ordinary chondrite, meaning it contains a high percentage of roundish embedded mineral grains that were once molten droplets that collided to form asteroids.

  • On June 26, 2025, the meteorite crashed into a home in McDonough, Georgia.
  • About 470 million years ago, the meteorite broke off from a larger asteroid that formed 20 million years before Earth.

The players

Scott Harris

A planetary geologist at the University of Georgia who examined the meteorite fragments and dust.

McDonough Meteorite

A 4.56 billion-year-old meteorite fragment that crashed into a home in McDonough, Georgia, in 2025.

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What they’re saying

“A lot of these asteroids have undergone a lot of collisions, a lot of internal damage, billions of years before they encounter Earth. So we think it may have been traveling many many hundreds of meters per second, even up to as much as one kilometer per second as it went through the house.”

— Scott Harris, Planetary Geologist, University of Georgia (UGA video release)

What’s next

Harris and his research team are collaborating with Arizona State University researchers to submit their findings and the pending name McDonough Meteorite to the Nomenclature Committee of the Meteorological Society, which will publish the information in the Meteoritical Bulletin.

The takeaway

This rare meteorite impact provides a unique opportunity to study the origins of our solar system and could help scientists better understand how to protect against future asteroid threats to Earth.