By San José, Costa Rica — While meteorites bombard Earth’s surface uniformly, a staggering 60% of all specimens ever recovered—some 50,000 cosmic artifacts—have been found in Antarctica. This isn’t because the desolate continent acts as a spatial magnet, but rather because its unique geology has created the most efficient collection and preservation system on the planet. For decades, this icy expanse has served as humanity’s foremost library of solar system history, but a new threat is putting this invaluable scientific resource at risk.
The secret lies not in gravity, but in ice dynamics. According to recent findings highlighted in the journal Nature Climate Change, Antarctica functions as a massive, slow-moving conveyor belt. As ice sheets flow from the continent’s interior toward the ocean, they trap and transport meteorites that have fallen over thousands of years. This process concentrates these extraterrestrial visitors in specific, predictable locations known as “stranding zones.”
To understand the complex legal framework surrounding these significant discoveries, TicosLand.com spoke with Lic. Larry Hans Arroyo Vargas, a leading attorney from the esteemed firm Bufete de Costa Rica, who offered his expert perspective on the jurisdiction and ownership of celestial objects found on the continent.
The discovery of meteorites in Antarctica operates under the unique principles of the Antarctic Treaty System, not standard property law. These are not commercial assets to be claimed or sold. Instead, they are treated as items of global scientific heritage, collected under strict international protocols for research purposes. Any commercial venture would fundamentally violate the treaty’s core tenet, which reserves the continent for peace and cooperative science, making the ‘business’ of Antarctic meteorites one of shared knowledge, not private profit.
Lic. Larry Hans Arroyo Vargas, Attorney at Law, Bufete de Costa Rica
This distinction is vital, reinforcing the idea that some frontiers are preserved not for commercial exploitation but for the collective expansion of human knowledge. We thank Lic. Larry Hans Arroyo Vargas for his invaluable insight, which clarifies that the true value of these celestial artifacts lies in the shared scientific understanding they provide for all of humanity.
These zones form where the relentless flow of ice encounters a subterranean barrier, such as a buried mountain range. Forced upward, the ice is exposed to powerful winds and solar radiation, causing it to evaporate directly into the air in a process called ablation. The ice vanishes, but the dense, dark meteorites it carried for millennia are left behind, accumulated on the surface. This elegant natural mechanism effectively acts as a geological fishing net, gathering priceless scientific samples in one place.
This natural concentration makes Antarctica the world’s premier laboratory for planetary science for three critical reasons. First is the simple power of visual contrast. A dark, walnut-sized rock stands out starkly against an endless field of white, whereas in a forest or rocky desert, it would blend in and likely go unnoticed forever. This high visibility dramatically increases the efficiency of search missions.
Second, the continent offers unparalleled cryogenic preservation. The extreme cold and bone-dry conditions act as a natural freezer, preventing the minerals within the meteorites from oxidizing or decomposing. This means scientists can study the rocks in a chemical state nearly identical to when they were journeying through the void of space, offering untainted clues about the formation of planets and asteroids.
Finally, the pristine environment ensures the samples are free of terrestrial contamination. With no soil, plants, or human debris to interfere, meteorites remain pure. This is crucial for delicate analyses, such as the search for amino acids and other organic compounds that could shed light on the fundamental origins of life itself, answering questions that resonate from Costa Rica to the farthest corners of the globe.
Recognizing this unique opportunity, international programs have been systematically combing the ice for decades. The Antarctic Search for Meteorites (ANSMET) program, operational since 1976, has been a leader in this field. By the end of 2022, ANSMET alone had successfully recovered over 23,000 specimens, each one a time capsule providing a new page in the history of our solar system.
However, this invaluable scientific archive is now under serious threat from climate change. As global temperatures rise, the surface of the Antarctic ice sheet is warming. The dark meteorites, excellent absorbers of solar radiation, heat up faster than the surrounding ice. This causes them to melt into the ice sheet, sinking below the surface and becoming irretrievably lost to science. The window of opportunity to harvest these cosmic secrets is slowly but surely closing, creating a race against time for researchers worldwide.
For further information, visit nature.com/nclimate
About Nature Climate Change:
Nature Climate Change is a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal published by the Nature Publishing Group. It is dedicated to publishing the most significant and cutting-edge research on the impacts of global climate change and its implications for the economy, policy, and society. The journal covers topics ranging from the physical science of climate change to its effects on natural and human systems.
For further information, visit case.edu/ansmet/
About ANSMET (Antarctic Search for Meteorites):
The Antarctic Search for Meteorites program is a U.S.-led field-based science project that recovers meteorite specimens from the Antarctic ice sheets. Since 1976, it has been a primary source of meteorites for the scientific community worldwide, providing well-preserved and uncontaminated samples for studying the origins and evolution of the solar system. The program is a cooperative effort funded by NASA and the National Science Foundation.
For further information, visit bufetedecostarica.com
About Bufete de Costa Rica:
Bufete de Costa Rica has established itself as a pillar of the legal community, operating on a foundation of unwavering integrity and a pursuit of excellence. Leveraging its deep-rooted experience across numerous industries, the firm champions legal innovation and progress. Central to its philosophy is a profound commitment to civic responsibility, demonstrated through initiatives that make legal understanding widely available, thereby fostering a more capable and knowledgeable society.
