Hi Pat-
You can't reliably determine anything about the path of an unwitnessed
meteor by analyzing a strewn field. That's because the effect of winds
can completely erase the effects of the trajectory. As a simple example,
you can't distinguish between a meteor that came in at a vertical angle
with strong easterly winds, and one that came at a shallower angle from
the west with no wind, or with a headwind. It is perfectly possible for
a strewn field to be oriented with the largest meteorites up-path from
the smallest- all it takes is a single terminal explosion (as opposed to
a long breakup) and a strong tailwind.
Analyzing a strewn field is useful for estimating where else to look for
meteorites, but that's about it.
Chris
*****************************************
Chris L Peterson
Cloudbait Observatory
http://www.cloudbait.com
----- Original Message -----
From: "Pat Brown" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: "Robin Galyan" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
<[email protected]>
Sent: Sunday, April 08, 2007 10:15 PM
Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] fall patterns
Hi Robin,
The heavier parts of a body after breakup will fly
further. The lighter parts will slow down faster and
not travel as fardown range. The reason for this is
that the smaller parts have more aerodynamic drag per
unit of mass and slow down quicker. The heaier parts
have less drag per unit mass and will not slow down as
quickly.
In a strewn field that is carefully mapped with the
location and mass of each fragment, it is east to see
which direction a meteoroid approached from. A line
drawn from the lightest fragment to the heaviest
fragmet will show the direction of travel. This is one
of the reasons that keeping good records is important.
Best Regards,
Pat Brown
/meteorite-list
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