BRADENTON -- A fragment of the 4.5 billion-year-old Campo del Cielo meteorite has landed at the South Florida Museum in Bradenton.

Nicknamed "FeNi" for its elements, it's yours to touch.

Or take home.

The public is invited to visit the South Florida Museum, 201 10th St. W., Bradenton, from 5-9 p.m. Friday to experience the object said to be the "oldest you will ever encounter."

The event is free.

And the first 500 children there will receive his or her own vial of meteorite dust, gratis.

All guests will be able to touch, feel and experience the meteorite.

The opportunity is designed to allow the community to experience the original materials that make up our solar system. This fragment will bring a piece of space to the Bradenton area community and be on permanent display at the museum.

At Friday's event, the museum will also host a star talk, science demonstrations and activities centered around the Campo del Cielo meteorite, which plummeted to earth sometime around the year 2500 B.C.

The pieces rained down on an area now called Campo del Cielo -- the Field of Heaven -- a crater field in northern Argentina. More than 100 tons of the Campo del Cielo meteorite have been recovered, including the 138-pound fragment now found in Bradenton.

Admission is free. Information: 941-746-4131 or visit www.southfloridamuseum.org.