Sotheby’s auction house described the meteorite, a reddish brown rock, as “unbelievably rare”. Only about 400 Martian meteorites have ever been found on Earth.

“This is the largest piece of Mars on planet Earth. The odds of this getting from there to here are astronomically small,” Cassandra Hatton, vice-chairman of science and natural history at Sotheby’s, said in a video posted online.

“Remember that approximately 70% of Earth’s surface is covered in water. So we’re incredibly lucky that this landed on dry land instead of the middle of the ocean where we could actually find it.”

It remains unclear where the meteorite will end up as information about the sale will remain private.

Additional taxes and fees brought the total price of the rock up to about $5.3m, Sotheby’s said.

At the Wednesday auction, which featured more than 100 items, a Ceratosaurus skeleton from the late Jurassic period sold for $26m and the skull of a Pachycephalosaurus sold for $1.4m.

[BBC]

US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said the probe was being launched at Trump’s direction “into Brazil’s attacks on American social media companies as well as other unfair trading practices that harm American companies, workers, farmers, and technology innovators”.

“I have determined that Brazil’s tariff and non-tariff barriers merit a thorough investigation, and potentially, responsive action,” he said.

Greer accused Brazil of disadvantaging American exports by offering lower tariffs to other trade partners.

Investigators will look into alleged attempts by Brazil to penalise US companies involved in digital trade and services for not censoring political speech.

The office also alleged a lack of adequate enforcement of intellectual property rights, harming US workers “whose livelihoods are tied to America’s innovation- and creativity-driven sectors.”

Trump first threatened the investigation in a letter to Brazil’s president, Luiz Inacio Lula de Silva last week. In the same letter, the US president announced a 50% tariff on Brazil starting on 1 August. Lula said in response that Brazil would match any increase in tariffs.

Last year, trade between the two countries was worth $90bn (£67.2bn).

Washington reported a trade surplus with Brazil of $7.4bn in 2024, a 33% percent increase on the previous year.