NASA News
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
John F. Kennedy Space Center
Kennedy Space Center, Florida 32899
AC 321-867-2468
For Release: Oct. 11, 2002
KSC Contact: Manny Virata
(321) 867-2468
KSC Release No. 99 - 02
MEDIA OPPORTUNITY:
NASA RESEARCHERS PROBE METEORITE
A new NASA study of a one-of-a-kind meteorite found 36 years ago in
Australia could help provide the science community and industry
with fundamental knowledge for use in the design of advanced
materials.
Such materials could be used for future spacecraft, improved jet
aircraft and in various manufactured goods from cars to household
materials. In addition, the meteorite - now at Kennedy Space Center
- could help reveal secrets about the core of our planet and its
magnetic field.
The 100-pound Mundrabilla meteorite sample, which is on loan to
Marshall Space Flight Center from the Smithsonian Institution's
National Museum of Natural History, is being studied by MSFC and
KSC, primarily through the use of KSC's Computed Tomography Scanner.
Dr. Donald Gillies, discipline scientist for materials science at
MSFC's Microgravity Science and Applications Department, is the
Principal Investigator on the study.
"Most meteorites are solid chunks of metal, surrounded by a rocky
surface. This one is a combination of materials (iron-nickel and
iron-sulfide) that became solid at different rates in cooling over
millions of years," Dr. Gillies said. "It offers an amazing
opportunity for understanding fundamentals of alloy formation."
Pete Engel, an engineering specialist in Wyle Laboratory's
Nondestructive Testing Laboratory at KSC, has processed the scans
of the meteorite at KSC.
"The CT Scanner is able to reveal the untouched internal structure
of the meteorite by detecting differences in the densities of its
materials," Engel said. "Without a tool like the scanner, it would
be impossible to study the inside of the meteorite without altering
it by sawing into it or grinding it up."
The idea behind computed tomography - first used in the medical
field - is to create a picture of a very thin cross section of an
object by passing a very thin fan of X-rays or gamma rays through
it and then repeating the process until every slice of an object is
imaged in order to create a 3-D image. Dr. Gillies and Engel are
conducting the meteorite CT work at KSC using gamma rays given off
by a pencil lead-sized piece of radioactive cobalt as it decays.
"This meteorite, like all meteorites, was formed in a lower gravity
environment than here on Earth," Dr. Gillies pointed out. "Like
experiments performed on the Space Shuttle or the International
Space Station, this research allows us to look at fundamental
science questions. Unlike our own flight experiments, this one
represents a billion year solidification experiment in low gravity."
NOTE: Media members who wish to view the meteorite and Computed
Tomography Scanner and interview Pete Engel should call Manny Virata
at 867-2468 to schedule a time from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Wednesday,
Oct. 16, for a tour of the Nondestructive Testing Laboratory.
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