The term "meteor" is originally Greek and means "phenomenon that took place in the sky". It particularly refers to the light phenomenon caused by the ignition of cosmic matter due to its friction with the terrestrial atmosphere. If as a result of burning, there is still some matter left, then this matter falls on the earth and is called "meteorite". After recent research, the conclusion is that a small part of these are fragments from the moon or Mars, the rest originates also in the solar system, between the planets Mars and Jupiter.
On Romanian territory, there have been registered 10 meteorite falls; there is material only from 9 of these, the largest quantity resulting from the fall at Mociu – the scientific denomination is "the Mocs meteorite" – Cluj county (year of fall 1882). In the exhibition, there can be seen fragments of 7 of the Romanian meteorites, including the largest fragment (35.7 kg) of the Mociu meteorite, next to meteorites that have fallen on all five continents, some of these representing worldwide rarities.
