An Article In Meteorite-Times Magazine
by Robert Verish
An Article In Meteorite-Times Magazine
by Robert Verish
The Last Meteorite Found for Year 2009 (Maybe?)
Could this meteorite that was found on December 31st (18:50 GMT) be the very last find for the year 2009?
This abbreviated version of Bob's Findings is due to the recency of this meteorite find.
Typical landscape in the Sonoran Desert of North America
Other than cholla and ocotillo, there is very little vegetation at this locality.
Just discernable in the middle of the above image (and off into the distance) stands a meteorite hunter, giving some sense of scale to the daunting task of searching for meteorites at his locality.
We got a late start, but we eventually found our way back to the same spot from the previous day where I had a "very good feeling" about the surface we were searching. I was a little disappointed to see so many ATV tracks on such a nice surface, but something told me to stop and park the truck immediately. I actually parked just next to a well-used ATV trail. Although having cell phone reception was a god-send for helping us locate this spot, it also made us vulnerable to distracting phone calls. Which was exactly what happened while I was parking the truck: James got a phone call on his cell phone.
Not sure why, but without grabbing any of his gear, James decided to get out of the truck in order to take his phone call. Figuring that James wanted some privacy as he walked around the truck talking on his cell phone, I stayed inside the truck and took my time gearing-up for the morning hike.
It wasn't very long until I heard a tapping sound on the front passenger side window. It was James, still talking on his cell phone, but he was smiling and pointing straight down, which I immediately knew was the "international sign" for "you just parked next to a meteorite - AGAIN!"
The reason I say "again" is because this has happened more than just a couple times in the past. In fact, this happens often enough that we now measure the distance from the truck to the find, and in this case, it was only the 3rd shortest distance! I insist that there is no way, statistically speaking, to explain this phenomenon.
There's another version of the phenomenon that is well-known to meteorite-hunters, in which you hike all day but find nothing, only to return to your vehicle and then find a meteorite lying next to it. So, I'm not complaining. I'd rather have the meteorite found immediately, as opposed to finding it only after hiking all day.
Of course, we hiked all day and didn't find another meteorite.
Somewhere in the above image there lies (at least) one meteorite. Hint: follow the fresh ATV track along the left side of this image.
Instead of repeating what I wrote in one of my earlier articles about my method of taking "in-situ" images, I'll just redirect you to my May 2004 article. You can do so by "clicking" on this link below:
The image above is a close-up of the previous image.
Above is another in-situ image of the meteorite and the find location. Hint: see the next image.
The above image is a close-up of the previous image.
The above image is an in-situ view rotated 180degrees from the previous image, now looking back into the direction of the sun, producing a strong reflection of sunlight.
The above image is a close-up of the previous image. Notice that James is still talking on his cell phone while searching for more meteorites.
The typical close-up view of most "in-situ meteorite" images.
The above image is a different version of the "typical close-up view of most in-situ images". I like to take this shot after having extracted the just found meteorite, flipping it over and laying it up-side-down next to its former resting place. This kind of shot gives us unique "once only" information that we can never "go back in time" to obtain. Notice that the scale cube has the "B" on top.
After taking the obligatory suite of in-situ images I like to take a couple images of the immediate area around the find location, and at the same time use this as an opportunity to take another image of the "just-plucked" meteorite.
The above two images are different in that they are taken with different lens settings. The former was taken in macro mode and the latter was set to infinity. Most photographers strive to keep their shadow outside of the field-of-view of their shot, but in these two images, my shadow is intentionally included.
Although this stony was mildly attracted to a magnet, it did not produce any response on my White's VSat Goldmaster metal-detector (unfortunately).
The above image depicts the 2009-12-31 meteorite find after it has been cleaned in warm distilled water, removing any sand or clay from its exterior. Now that this specimen has been "cleaned" it can be weighed. Its mass is 21.3 grams.
The above image depicts the "bottom-side" of this post-cleaned (but pre-cut) 2009-12-31meteorite find.
Since the above images were taken this specimen has been cut. A 6.7 gram sample has been extracted, from which a thin-section will be made and the remaining mass will be submitted as a type specimen.
Preliminary examination suggests that this stony is an equilibrated L-chondrite.
Moni Waiblinger and James LaBarbera later that same day (New Years Eve) at the Barona Casino.
Over dinner we discussed our recent trip and wondered whether our find was the last one made for year 2009, and whether it was the last meteorite found for this past decade (if you count year 2000 as the beginning of the past decade). We reflected on the past 10 years, and speculated on what the next 10 years would bring. The buffet closed and we moved the party out into the casino.
The author with James inside the Barona Casino toasting the New Year with free glasses of champagne. (Image by Moni.)
As evidenced by the poor quality of the above image, all of the free champagne has degraded my ability to take a decent picture. But we had a lot to celebrate that night.
Bob's Findings - article titled, Taking Pictures of Meteorites - In-Situ Images of "in-place" meteorites - as they were found on the ground", in Meteorite-Times.com - May 2004.
Link to the website with the latest issue of:
MAPS Vol. 44 Supplement 2009 July
My previous articles can be found *HERE*
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