RE: [meteorite-list] Meteorite hunting in the UK...
Stu, Thats about my experience too, I once tied a NeBoron magnet to my dog with a long piece of string (!) and we walked across farmland, it was amazing the amount of stuff that stuck to the magent mostly tractor blade and magnetite, I found a couple of meteorwrongs, but no luck so far. Its good to know other people are searching the UK and not giving in to the text book its not worth it! - Keep it up. Good luck, Mark -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: 11 June 2003 17:05 To: mark ford; [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] Meteorite hunting in the UK... Hi Mark, Well, *my* meteorite hunting - up here in the Lake District in the north of England - consists of checking each and every dry stone wall (not just Hadrian's) whenever I'm out walking or hiking. Always have a magnet on me, and my digital camera so I'm ready to document any possible suspects. As for farm fields, while it's true that many have undoubtedly been lost to ploughing, many farmers in my area at least still make rock piles when they're clearing a field, and on a couple of occasions I've asked permission to have a ratch through them, promising to share the spoils. Aye, go ahead lad... is the response 50% of the time, usually accompanied by that tell-tale nutter! _expression_ on their face... Otherwise, UK meteorite hunting, for me, is an endless round of keeping your eyes peeled whenever you're out, wherever you are. Every dark rock, every heavire-than-normal rock, every even-slightly pitted rock becomes an object of intense scrutiny and misplaced excitement. Have brought home dozens of meteor-wrongs after walks and hikes... frustrating and disappointing, yes, but one day, one day...! Stu
Re: [meteorite-list] Meteorite hunting in the UK...
Steve, List, Thanks for retelling that account, It's a fascinating example of the human experience, and proves that meteorites may be found hiding right in front of us! I had forgotten many of the details but now I have them, and other people that have not had the pleasure to meet you, and share some stories, will have it also. Wonderful story, thanks for sharing. As far as hunting walls in the UK, I don't imagine it's much different from hunting them here in Mi. where I live. I havn't found one in a wall yet, but it is only a matter of numbers, sooner or later... I have permission from some big farmers a little north of me, hunting grounds are endless. So check those walls and fence rows no matter where you live, you never know! Happy Hunting, Larry
Re: [meteorite-list] Meteorite hunting in the UK...
Larry, It has been 41 years since, and I can remember it well, and that is amazing. To have had the details confirmed recently by Jeff Wark is even more amazing. Had that stone wall been there, and not demolished in road widening, I am sure Jeff would have found a nice 15 lb or so, stone meteorite. Cemented in the jamb right near and adjacent where the gate handle would have been. You know, I don't know if Nininger ever found one in a stone wall. But I know that he looked. It would only be logical. Steve Schoner/AMS --- [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Steve, List, Thanks for retelling that account, It's a fascinating example of the human experience, and proves that meteorites may be found hiding right in front of us! I had forgotten many of the details but now I have them, and other people that have not had the pleasure to meet you, and share some stories, will have it also. Wonderful story, thanks for sharing. As far as hunting walls in the UK, I don't imagine it's much different from hunting them here in Mi. where I live. I havn't found one in a wall yet, but it is only a matter of numbers, sooner or later... I have permission from some big farmers a little north of me, hunting grounds are endless. So check those walls and fence rows no matter where you live, you never know! Happy Hunting, Larry __ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Calendar - Free online calendar with sync to Outlook(TM). http://calendar.yahoo.com __ Meteorite-list mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
Re: [meteorite-list] Meteorite hunting in the UK...
Mark wrote: I was wondering if anybody has any idea of what the actual likelyhood of finding anything meteoric in somewhere like England (the UK). Hi Mark and List, Has anyone in the UK or in Scotland ever done a systematic investigation of all those hundreds or thousands of stones that were used when the Romans built Hadrian's Wall ? One or several of them might be meteoritic! Bernd To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Cc: [EMAIL PROTECTED] __ Meteorite-list mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
Re: [meteorite-list] Meteorite hunting in the UK...
--- mark ford [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Hi all, I realize that most of the text books say, it's not worth going out specifically to look for meteorites, unless it is a known strewn field or a suspected fall site... but. I was wondering if anybody has any idea of what the actual likelyhood of finding anything meteoric in somewhere like England (the UK). I realize that anything one did find would likely be very weathered, but given the high average number of falls per square kilometer earth wide isn't likely that in a field system of a few square miles there should be something ? (And I know that our very own Rob Elliot found some in Scotland a while ago). Any comments anyone? Regards, Mark If I were to look in the UK This may sound funny to some, but think about it Hadrian's Wall. Lots of rocks, hand gathered 2,000 years ago, and piled from coast to coast. A good metal detector, set to find stone and iron meteorites,and the will to walk, (with the proper permits of course) and who knows? Might find something in that lenghty pile. Steve Schoner http://www.geocities.com/meteorite_identification __ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Calendar - Free online calendar with sync to Outlook(TM). http://calendar.yahoo.com __ Meteorite-list mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
Re: [meteorite-list] Meteorite hunting in the UK...
If I were to look in the UK This may sound funny to some, but think about it Hadrian's Wall. Lots of rocks, hand gathered 2,000 years ago, and piled from coast to coast. I'm not so sure that taking rocks from a historical landmark is such a good idea! Fortunately, in Scotland we have thousands of walls like it, the dry staine dikes that most outdoor walls in the Scottish Highlands are made of. They're just walls made of piles of stones without anything to hold them together. Its very difficult to build a good one, but there seem to be plenty of people in the Highlands good enough at it, because they're all over the place. I'm always scanning them for black rocks when I'm out hillwalking, so far without success. I've no idea if they're as common in England or Wales though. Regards, Stuart Forbes Edinburgh, Scotland __ Meteorite-list mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
Re: [meteorite-list] Meteorite hunting in the UK...
--- Stuart Forbes [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: If I were to look in the UK This may sound funny to some, but think about it Hadrian's Wall. Lots of rocks, hand gathered 2,000 years ago, and piled from coast to coast. I'm not so sure that taking rocks from a historical landmark is such a good idea! Fortunately, in Scotland we have thousands of walls like it, the dry staine dikes that most outdoor walls in the Scottish Highlands are made of. They're just walls made of piles of stones without anything to hold them together. Its very difficult to build a good one, but there seem to be plenty of people in the Highlands good enough at it, because they're all over the place. I'm always scanning them for black rocks when I'm out hillwalking, so far without success. I've no idea if they're as common in England or Wales though. Regards, Stuart Forbes Edinburgh, Scotland Oh, I would never advocate breaking down a historic landmark... That is why I qualified the remark with proper permits required. An exavation grant perhaps with a Museum? A long shot of course. I read that in Hadrian's Wall, there are sections that are lose piles of rock. And those other stone walls that you mention... Yes, they would be excellent. But use a good metal detector, one that can sort our stone meteorites from the sedimentary rocks that are probably common to the UK. But in the case of stone wall meteorite collections, I would imagine that solid irons, or stony irons would be rare if non existent. These would have stood out and been long since smelted, or used for other things than mere stones for a wall. Steve Schoner/AMS Steve Schoner __ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Calendar - Free online calendar with sync to Outlook(TM). http://calendar.yahoo.com __ Meteorite-list mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
Re: [meteorite-list] Meteorite hunting in the UK..
I'm sure some of the UK folks will chime in on this, but I believe that Hadrian's wall largely follows the course of the Great Whin Sill (a quartz dolerite that strikes E-W and dips S) which not only provided a physical obstacle to the barbarians to the north (Rob?) but also provided the building material of the wall itself. The construction is impressive - both outer and inner ditches (excavated from the dolerite providing material for the standard 10 foot thick wall faced with finished cut stone), a parallel military road and a civilian one. __ Meteorite-list mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
Re: [meteorite-list] Meteorite hunting in the UK...
Hi Mark, Well, *my* meteorite hunting - up here in the Lake District in the north of England - consists of checking each and every dry stone wall (not just Hadrian's) whenever I'm out walking or hiking. Always have a magnet on me, and my digital camera so I'm ready to document any possible suspects. As for farm fields, while it's true that many have undoubtedly been lost to ploughing, many farmers in my area at least still make "rock piles" when they're clearing a field, and on a couple of occasions I've asked permission to have a ratch through them, promising to share the spoils. "Aye, go ahead lad..." is the response 50% of the time, usually accompanied by that tell-tale "nutter!" _expression_ on their face... Otherwise, UK meteorite hunting, for me, is an endless round of keeping your eyes peeled whenever you're out, wherever you are. Every dark rock, every heavire-than-normal rock, every even-slightly pitted rock becomes an object of intense scrutiny and misplaced excitement. Have brought home dozens of meteor-wrongs after walks and hikes... frustrating and disappointing, yes, but one day, one day...! Stu
Re: [meteorite-list] Meteorite hunting in the UK...
Stu, Sounds like meteorite hunting in the north of England is just like meteorite hunting here in the northwest of Indiana. Same results here after nearly six years, but I'll never quit. They're out there...somewhere. Keep on keepin' on, Steve --- [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Hi Mark, Well, *my* meteorite hunting - up here in the Lake District in the north of England - consists of checking each and every dry stone wall (not just Hadrian's) whenever I'm out walking or hiking. Always have a magnet on me, and my digital camera so I'm ready to document any possible suspects. As for farm fields, while it's true that many have undoubtedly been lost to ploughing, many farmers in my area at least still make rock piles when they're clearing a field, and on a couple of occasions I've asked permission to have a ratch through them, promising to share the spoils. Aye, go ahead lad... is the response 50% of the time, usually accompanied by that tell-tale nutter! expression on their face... Otherwise, UK meteorite hunting, for me, is an endless round of keeping your eyes peeled whenever you're out, wherever you are. Every dark rock, every heavire-than-normal rock, every even-slightly pitted rock becomes an object of intense scrutiny and misplaced excitement. Have brought home dozens of meteor-wrongs after walks and hikes... frustrating and disappointing, yes, but one day, one day...! Stu = Steve Witt IMCA #9020 http://www.meteoritecollectors.org __ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Calendar - Free online calendar with sync to Outlook(TM). http://calendar.yahoo.com __ Meteorite-list mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
Re: [meteorite-list] Meteorite hunting in the UK...
--- [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Steve, But in the case of stone wall meteorite collections, I would imagine that solid irons, or stony irons would be rare if non existent. These would have stood out and been long since smelted, or used for other things than mere stones for a wall. When I met you in 2001 at Tucson, did't you tell me a story about a meteorite you identified as a kid, in a wall? Out in California was it? -Larry Yes, absolutely. I was 11 years old when in a town just below Yosemite National Park, there was a rock shop called the Uranium Mine and it was an actual mine going into the hill side on the road with a parking lot. The front of it was a shack like structure and to go into the mine that also served as the entrance. There were rocks filling every shelf. All sorts of rocks, fossils, and of course weird florescent uranium minerals. What immediately caught my eye was a large mass with regmaglyphs and a cut face showing the interior. It was about 35 lbs, and it was fresh. The person that was the proprietor of the store, an old man dressed as a '49ner, saw me admiring that plain looking rock, and he then asked me what I thought it was. I told him. it is a stone meteorite, sir. And it is fresh. That is it looks like it fell yesterday. The store manager was amazed, for he told me that I was the first one that could identify it, out of all those that had seen it since he acquired it. I then asked him where he got it. He pointed out the window, over the creek and to the mountains beyond. There was a big fireball that broke up over this part some years ago, and it was reported that pieces of it fell here and nearby. Afterwards I went out looking for it, and I found this, over there on that mountain side. I was amazed. Nothing in his store, except that meteorite interested me. And he asked me questions about meteorites and I think I amazed him, that I knew so much about them at 11 years of age. I was amazed, that he found such a beautiful specimen. While my parents and my brother were in the store, I went outside to look at those mountains. And I wondered about that find and that there might be other specimens yet to be found on its slopes. Then I noticed a stone wall on a property across the road. It was a sold stone wall that was striking as it was made of petrified wood, and other really nice looking rocks. I had not seen a stone wall like that, so I walked across the road to take a closer look. And what I saw in that wall right next to the gate caught my attention immediately. I could not believe it It was a METEORITE!... the same type that I saw in the store, but the surface had developed some rust spots being exposed to the weather. And it too was fresh. I went to the gate jamb to take a closer look, and on my knees I examined it closely. The fusion crust was amazing, and there were some breaks exposing a very dark interior matrix. The the home owner came out... Get away from my fence, Boy! he shouted. And I stood up and backed away. But, sir! I said, Do you know that this rock here is a meteorite? And he retorted, I know! And I don't what you touching anything in my wall So I left him and his wall and returned to the store, and said the store owner, You know that guy next door, with the stone wall... He has a meteorite, too, right in his wall. And I can't remember what the store owner said, other than the fact that some people went out looking after the fireball. I held this story for a long time, and recently a couple of years ago, I mentioned it to a friend Jeff Wark in CA. He actually was so compelled that he went up there to that little town below Yosemite and found the place called the Uranium Mine, or what was left of it. They had widened the road for access to the park, and it was taken over by the road department. People remembered it, and the old codger that ran it many years ago. And the house with the stone wall, it was once there, too. But in the road widening project the State had brought it and demolished the stone wall, the pieces of it bulldozed away. So, my memory of the place was confirmed, it was or just out side of Merced (sp), so Jeff Wark said, and not too far from this place was a trout farm, which I think is still there. Too bad no one recovered those meteorites, and I wonder what happened to them. But I do know this, that on a hillside just south of Yosemite National Park there must be quite a few meteorites yet to be found. Steve Schoner/AMS __ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Calendar - Free online calendar with sync to Outlook(TM). http://calendar.yahoo.com __ Meteorite-list mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
