[meteorite-list] Meteorite Picture of the Day
Today's Meteorite Picture of the Day: Chelyabinsk Contributed by: Peter Marmet http://www.tucsonmeteorites.com/mpod.asp __ Visit the Archives at http://www.meteorite-list-archives.com Meteorite-list mailing list Meteorite-list@meteoritecentral.com http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
Re: [meteorite-list] Nickel-iron meteorite used to make 5, 000 year old Egyptian beads
Hi Robin, only short remark, that the iron beads from the Gerzeh tombs are of meteoritic origin (due to their high Ni-content), was already stated in 1932 by Gerald Wainwright. Also Buchwald 1975 seems to have them. Best! Martin -Ursprüngliche Nachricht- Von: meteorite-list-boun...@meteoritecentral.com [mailto:meteorite-list-boun...@meteoritecentral.com] Im Auftrag von Robin Whittle Gesendet: Donnerstag, 30. Mai 2013 06:11 An: METEORITE LIST Betreff: [meteorite-list] Nickel-iron meteorite used to make 5, 000 year old Egyptian beads The article: http://www.nature.com/news/iron-in-egyptian-relics-came-from-space-1.13091 reports on an article behind a paywall: Analysis of a prehistoric Egyptian iron bead with implications for the use and perception of meteorite iron in ancient Egypt Diane Johnson, Joyce Tyldesley, Tristan Lowe, Philip J. Withers, Monica M. Grady. Meteoritics Planetary Science online: 20 May 2013 DOI: 10./maps.12120 http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10./maps.12120/abstract Abstract: Tube-shaped beads excavated from grave pits at the prehistoric Gerzeh cemetery, approximately 3300 BCE, represent the earliest known use of iron in Egypt. Using a combination of scanning electron microscopy and micro X-ray microcomputer tomography, we show that microstructural and chemical analysis of a Gerzeh iron bead is consistent with a cold-worked iron meteorite. Thin fragments of parallel bands of taenite within a meteoritic Widmanstätten pattern are present, with structural distortion caused by cold-working. The metal fragments retain their original chemistry of approximately 30 wt% nickel. The bulk of the bead is highly oxidized, with only approximately 2.4% of the total bead volume remaining as metal. Our results show that the first known example of the use of iron in Egypt was produced from a meteorite, its celestial origin having implications for both the perception of meteorite iron by ancient Egyptians and the development of metallurgical knowledge in the Nile Valley. The Nature write-up includes a quote from a museum creator that during the time of the Pharaohs, the gods were believed to have bones made of iron. - Robin __ Visit the Archives at http://www.meteorite-list-archives.com Meteorite-list mailing list Meteorite-list@meteoritecentral.com http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list __ Visit the Archives at http://www.meteorite-list-archives.com Meteorite-list mailing list Meteorite-list@meteoritecentral.com http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
[meteorite-list] Nickel-iron meteorite used to make 5, 000 year old Egyptian beads
Hello List, see also: J.G. Burke (1986) Cosmic Debris, Meteorites in History, Folklore, Myth, and Utility, pp. 229-236! Best wishes, Bernd __ Visit the Archives at http://www.meteorite-list-archives.com Meteorite-list mailing list Meteorite-list@meteoritecentral.com http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
[meteorite-list] NASA Radar Reveals Asteroid 1998 QE2 Has Its Own Moon
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2013-182 NASA Radar Reveals Asteroid Has Its Own Moon Jet Propulsion Laboratory May 30, 2013 PASADENA, Calif. -- A sequence of radar images of asteroid 1998 QE2 was obtained on the evening of May 29, 2013, by NASA scientists using the 230-foot (70-meter) Deep Space Network antenna at Goldstone, Calif., when the asteroid was about 3.75 million miles (6 million kilometers) from Earth, which is 15.6 lunar distances. The radar imagery revealed that 1998 QE2 is a binary asteroid. In the near-Earth population, about 16 percent of asteroids that are about 655 feet (200 meters) or larger are binary or triple systems. Radar images suggest that the main body, or primary, is approximately 1.7 miles (2.7 kilometers) in diameter and has a rotation period of less than four hours. Also revealed in the radar imagery of 1998 QE2 are several dark surface features that suggest large concavities. The preliminary estimate for the size of the asteroid's satellite, or moon, is approximately 2,000 feet (600 meters) wide. The radar collage covers a little bit more than two hours. The radar observations were led by scientist Marina Brozovic of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. The closest approach of the asteroid occurs on May 31 at 1:59 p.m. Pacific (4:59 p.m. Eastern / 20:59 UTC), when the asteroid will get no closer than about 3.6 million miles (5.8 million kilometers), or about 15 times the distance between Earth and the moon. This is the closest approach the asteroid will make to Earth for at least the next two centuries. Asteroid 1998 QE2 was discovered on Aug. 19, 1998, by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Lincoln Near Earth Asteroid Research (LINEAR) program near Socorro, N.M. The resolution of these initial images of 1998 QE2 is approximately 250 feet (75 meters) per pixel. Resolution is expected to increase in the coming days as more data become available. Between May 30 and June 9, radar astronomers using NASA's 230-foot-wide (70 meter) Deep Space Network antenna at Goldstone, Calif., and the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico, will perform an extensive campaign of observations on asteroid 1998 QE2. The two telescopes have complementary imaging capabilities that will enable astronomers to learn as much as possible about the asteroid during its brief visit near Earth. Radar is a powerful technique for studying an asteroid's size, shape, rotation state, surface features and surface roughness, and for improving the calculation of asteroid orbits. Radar measurements of asteroid distances and velocities often enable computation of asteroid orbits much further into the future than if radar observations weren't available. NASA places a high priority on tracking asteroids and protecting our home planet from them. In fact, the United States has the most robust and productive survey and detection program for discovering near-Earth objects. To date, U.S. assets have discovered more than 98 percent of the known Near-Earth Objects. In 2012, the Near-Earth Object budget was increased from $6 million to $20 million. Literally dozens of people are involved with some aspect of near-Earth object research across NASA and its centers. Moreover, there are many more people involved in researching and understanding the nature of asteroids and comets, including those objects that come close to Earth, plus those who are trying to find and track them in the first place. In addition to the resources NASA puts into understanding asteroids, it also partners with other U.S. government agencies, university-based astronomers, and space science institutes across the country that are working to track and better understand these objects, often with grants, interagency transfers and other contracts from NASA. NASA's Near-Earth Object Program at NASA Headquarters, Washington, manages and funds the search, study, and monitoring of asteroids and comets whose orbits periodically bring them close to Earth. JPL manages the Near-Earth Object Program Office for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. In 2016, NASA will launch a robotic probe to one of the most potentially hazardous of the known Near-Earth Objects. The OSIRIS-REx mission to asteroid (101955) Bennu will be a pathfinder for future spacecraft designed to perform reconnaissance on any newly-discovered threatening objects. Aside from monitoring potential threats, the study of asteroids and comets enables a valuable opportunity to learn more about the origins of our solar system, the source of water on Earth, and even the origin of organic molecules that lead to the development of life. NASA recently announced development of a first-ever mission to identify, capture and relocate an asteroid for human exploration. Using game-changing technologies this mission would mark an unprecedented technological achievement that raises the bar of
[meteorite-list] Pebbly Rocks Testify to Old Streambed on Mars (MSL)
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2013-181 Pebbly Rocks Testify to Old Streambed on Mars Jet Propulsion Laboratory May 30, 2013 PASADENA, Calif. - Detailed analysis and review have borne out researchers' initial interpretation of pebble-containing slabs that NASA's Mars rover Curiosity investigated last year: They are part of an ancient streambed. The rocks are the first ever found on Mars that contain streambed gravels. The sizes and shapes of the gravels embedded in these conglomerate rocks -- from the size of sand particles to the size of golf balls -- enabled researchers to calculate the depth and speed of the water that once flowed at this location. We completed more rigorous quantification of the outcrops to characterize the size distribution and roundness of the pebbles and sand that make up these conglomerates, said Rebecca Williams of the Planetary Science Institute, Tucson, Ariz., lead author of a report about them in the journal Science this week. We ended up with a calculation in the same range as our initial estimate last fall. At a minimum, the stream was flowing at a speed equivalent to a walking pace -- a meter, or three feet, per second -- and it was ankle-deep to hip-deep. Three pavement-like rocks examined with the telephoto capability of Curiosity's Mast Camera (Mastcam) during the rover's first 40 days on Mars are the basis for the new report. One, Goulburn, is immediately adjacent to the rover's Bradbury Landing touchdown site. The other two, Link and Hottah, are about 165 and 330 feet (50 and 100 meters) to the southeast. Researchers also used the rover's laser-shooting Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam) instrument to investigate the Link rock. These conglomerates look amazingly like streambed deposits on Earth, Williams said. Most people are familiar with rounded river pebbles. Maybe you've picked up a smoothed, round rock to skip across the water. Seeing something so familiar on another world is exciting and also gratifying. The larger pebbles are not distributed evenly in the conglomerate rocks. In Hottah, researchers detected alternating pebble-rich layers and sand layers. This is common in streambed deposits on Earth and provides additional evidence for stream flow on Mars. In addition, many of the pebbles are touching each other, a sign that they rolled along the bed of a stream. Our analysis of the amount of rounding of the pebbles provided further information, said Sanjeev Gupta of Imperial College, London, a co-author of the new report. The rounding indicates sustained flow. It occurs as pebbles hit each other multiple times. This wasn't a one-off flow. It was sustained, certainly more than weeks or months, though we can't say exactly how long. The stream carried the gravels at least a few miles, or kilometers, the researchers estimated. The atmosphere of modern Mars is too thin to make a sustained stream flow of water possible, though the planet holds large quantities of water ice. Several types of evidence have indicated that ancient Mars had diverse environments with liquid water. However, none but these rocks found by Curiosity could provide the type of stream flow information published this week. Curiosity's images of conglomerate rocks indicate that atmospheric conditions at Gale Crater once enabled the flow of liquid water on the Martian surface. During a two-year prime mission, researchers are using Curiosity's 10 science instruments to assess the environmental history in Gale Crater on Mars, where the rover has found evidence of ancient environmental conditions favorable for microbial life. More information about Curiosity is online at: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/msl , http://www.nasa.gov/msl and http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/ . You can follow the mission on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/marscuriosity and on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/marscuriosity . Guy Webster 818-354-6278 Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. guy.webs...@jpl.nasa.gov 2013-181 __ Visit the Archives at http://www.meteorite-list-archives.com Meteorite-list mailing list Meteorite-list@meteoritecentral.com http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
[meteorite-list] Radiation Measured by NASA's Curiosity on Voyage to Mars has Implications for Future Human Missions
May 30, 2013 Trent J. Perrotto Headquarters, Washington 202-358-1100 trent.j.perro...@nasa.gov Deb Schmid Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio 210-522-2254 deb.sch...@swri.org RELEASE: 13-165 RADIATION MEASURED BY NASA'S CURIOSITY ON VOYAGE TO MARS HAS IMPLICATIONS FOR FUTURE HUMAN MISSIONS WASHINGTON -- Measurements taken by NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission as it delivered the Curiosity rover to Mars in 2012 are providing NASA the information it needs to design systems to protect human explorers from radiation exposure on deep-space expeditions in the future. MSL's Radiation Assessment Detector (RAD) is the first instrument to measure the radiation environment during a Mars cruise mission from inside a spacecraft that is similar to potential human exploration spacecraft. The findings will reduce uncertainty about the effectiveness of radiation shielding and provide vital information to space mission designers who will need to build in protection for spacecraft occupants in the future. As this nation strives to reach an asteroid and Mars in our lifetimes, we're working to solve every puzzle nature poses to keep astronauts safe so they can explore the unknown and return home, said William Gerstenmaier, NASA's associate administrator for human exploration and operations in Washington. We learn more about the human body's ability to adapt to space every day aboard the International Space Station. As we build the Orion spacecraft and Space Launch System rocket to carry and shelter us in deep space, we'll continue to make the advances we need in life sciences to reduce risks for our explorers. Curiosity's RAD instrument is giving us critical data we need so that we humans, like the rover, can dare mighty things to reach the Red Planet. The findings, which are published in the May 31 edition of the journal Science, indicate radiation exposure for human explorers could exceed NASA's career limit for astronauts if current propulsion systems are used. Two forms of radiation pose potential health risks to astronauts in deep space. One is galactic cosmic rays (GCRs), particles caused by supernova explosions and other high-energy events outside the solar system. The other is solar energetic particles (SEPs) associated with solar flares and coronal mass ejections from the sun. Radiation exposure is measured in units of Sievert (Sv) or milliSievert (one one-thousandth Sv). Long-term population studies have shown exposure to radiation increases a person's lifetime cancer risk. Exposure to a dose of 1 Sv, accumulated over time, is associated with a 5 percent increase in risk for developing fatal cancer. NASA has established a 3 percent increased risk of fatal cancer as an acceptable career limit for its astronauts currently operating in low-Earth orbit. The RAD data showed the Curiosity rover was exposed to an average of 1.8 milliSieverts of GCR per day on its journey to Mars. Only about 5 percent of the radiation dose was associated with solar particles because of a relatively quiet solar cycle and the shielding provided by the spacecraft. The RAD data will help inform current discussions in the United States medical community, which is working to establish exposure limits for deep-space explorers in the future. In terms of accumulated dose, it's like getting a whole-body CT scan once every five or six days, said Cary Zeitlin, a principal scientist at the Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) in San Antonio and lead author of the paper on the findings. Understanding the radiation environment inside a spacecraft carrying humans to Mars or other deep space destinations is critical for planning future crewed missions. Current spacecraft shield much more effectively against SEPs than GCRs. To protect against the comparatively low energy of typical SEPs, astronauts might need to move into havens with extra shielding on a spacecraft or on the Martian surface, or employ other countermeasures. GCRs tend to be highly energetic, highly penetrating particles that are not stopped by the modest shielding provided by a typical spacecraft. Scientists need to validate theories and models with actual measurements, which RAD is now providing, said Donald M. Hassler, a program director at SwRI and principal investigator of the RAD investigation. These measurements will be used to better understand how radiation travels through deep space and how it is affected and changed by the spacecraft structure itself. The spacecraft protects somewhat against lower energy particles, but others can propagate through the structure unchanged or break down into secondary particles. After Curiosity landed on Mars in August, the RAD instrument continued operating, measuring the radiation environment on the planet's surface. RAD data collected during Curiosity's science mission will continue to inform plans to
[meteorite-list] NASA's GRAIL Mission Solves Mystery of Moon's Surface Gravity
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2013-184 NASA's GRAIL Mission Solves Mystery of Moon's Surface Gravity Jet Propulsion Laboratory May 30, 2013 PASADENA, Calif. -- NASA's Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) mission has uncovered the origin of massive invisible regions that make the moon's gravity uneven, a phenomenon that affects the operations of lunar-orbiting spacecraft. Because of GRAIL's findings, spacecraft on missions to other celestial bodies can navigate with greater precision in the future. GRAIL's twin spacecraft studied the internal structure and composition of the moon in unprecedented detail for nine months. They pinpointed the locations of large, dense regions called mass concentrations, or mascons, which are characterized by strong gravitational pull. Mascons lurk beneath the lunar surface and cannot be seen by normal optical cameras. GRAIL scientists found the mascons by combining the gravity data from GRAIL with sophisticated computer models of large asteroid impacts and known detail about the geologic evolution of the impact craters. The findings are published in the May 30 edition of the journal Science. GRAIL data confirm that lunar mascons were generated when large asteroids or comets impacted the ancient moon, when its interior was much hotter than it is now, said Jay Melosh, a GRAIL co-investigator at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind., and lead author of the paper. We believe the data from GRAIL show how the moon's light crust and dense mantle combined with the shock of a large impact to create the distinctive pattern of density anomalies that we recognize as mascons. The origin of lunar mascons has been a mystery in planetary science since their discovery in 1968 by a team at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. Researchers generally agree mascons resulted from ancient impacts billions of years ago. It was not clear until now how much of the unseen excess mass resulted from lava filling the crater or iron-rich mantle upwelling to the crust. On a map of the moon's gravity field, a mascon appears in a target pattern. The bulls-eye has a gravity surplus. It is surrounded by a ring with a gravity deficit. A ring with a gravity surplus surrounds the bulls-eye and the inner ring. This pattern arises as a natural consequence of crater excavation, collapse and cooling following an impact. The increase in density and gravitational pull at a mascon's bulls-eye is caused by lunar material melted from the heat of a long-ago asteroid impact. Knowing about mascons means we finally are beginning to understand the geologic consequences of large impacts, Melosh said. Our planet suffered similar impacts in its distant past, and understanding mascons may teach us more about the ancient Earth, perhaps about how plate tectonics got started and what created the first ore deposits. This new understanding of lunar mascons also is expected to influence knowledge of planetary geology well beyond that of Earth and our nearest celestial neighbor. Mascons also have been identified in association with impact basins on Mars and Mercury, said GRAIL principal investigator Maria Zuber of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge. Understanding them on the moon tells us how the largest impacts modified early planetary crusts. Launched as GRAIL A and GRAIL B in September 2011, the probes, renamed Ebb and Flow, operated in a nearly circular orbit near the poles of the moon at an altitude of about 34 miles (55 kilometers) until their mission ended in December 2012. The distance between the twin probes changed slightly as they flew over areas of greater and lesser gravity caused by visible features, such as mountains and craters, and by masses hidden beneath the lunar surface. JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Calif. managed GRAIL for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. The mission was part of the Discovery Program managed at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, in Greenbelt, Md., manages the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. Operations of the spacecraft's laser altimeter, which provided supporting data used in this investigation, is led by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge. Lockheed Martin Space Systems in Denver built GRAIL. For more information about GRAIL, visit http://www.nasa.gov/grail and http://grail.nasa.gov . DC Agle 818-393-9011 Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. 818-393-9011 a...@jpl.nasa.gov Dwayne Brown 202-358-1726 Headquarters, Washington dwayne.c.br...@nasa.gov Elizabeth Gardner 765-494-2081 Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind. ekgard...@purdue.edu Jennifer Chu 617-715-4531 Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Mass. j_...@mit.edu 2013-184 __ Visit the Archives at http://www.meteorite-list-archives.com Meteorite-list mailing list
[meteorite-list] Wanted CR carbonaceous slices
Hello, Looking for some small CR carbonaceous slices. Please email me with pics and prices. Best Andre __ Visit the Archives at http://www.meteorite-list-archives.com Meteorite-list mailing list Meteorite-list@meteoritecentral.com http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
[meteorite-list] AD - 41 auctions on ebay ending sunday
Hello List I have 41 auctions on ebay, please take a look http://stores.ebay.com/PolandMET-Store?_trksid=p2047675.l2563 They ends sunday Jun 02, 2013 15:00-17:00PM US time Meteorite BENGUERIR [LL6] fresh OBSERVED fall from Morocco 1.74g Meteorite CAMEL DONGA [EUC] Australia achondrite endpiece 0.899g Meteorite DHOFAR 1658 [LL6] NEW Oman FIND 2.13g FRESH Meteorite GAO-GUENIE [H5] COMPLETE SPECIMEN 28.3g Meteorite GAO-GUENIE [H5] Impact Melt slice 6.02g Meteorite Impact Melt Breccia from Ries Crater in Nordlingen, Germany 40g Meteorite MONZE [L6] only FALL from ZAMBIA slice 1.93g Meteorite NWA 1465 unique CV3 anomalous 2.23g Meteorite NWA 2698 [Howardite] endpiece 2.30g Meteorite NWA 2826 [LL5] fresh amphoterite slice 4.37g Meteorite NWA 4044 [LL6] fresh slice 2.81g THICK CRUST Meteorite NWA 4430 [L3.8] low petrographic type 4.45g Meteorite NWA 4436 [L4] slice mirror polished 3.20g Meteorite NWA 4561 [EL3] enstatite BLUE CHONDRITE slice 12.2g Meteorite NWA 4967 [CO3.2] fresh carbonaceous slice 2.02g Meteorite NWA 4968 [Eucrite] fresh slice 0.69g Rare Meteorite NWA 4969 [Brachinite] fresh slice 0.558g Rare Meteorite NWA 5205 [LL3.2] excellent amphoterite 24.55g Meteorite NWA 5498 [H4] chondrite slice 6.23g Meteorite NWA 5499 [PAL] desert Pallasite endpiece 3.4g Meteorite NWA 5507 [L3.2] fresh slice with crust 4.62g Meteorite NWA 5508 [CV3] fresh carbonaceous endpiece 2.49g Meteorite NWA 6255 [L4] fresh chondrite slice 3.96g NEW Meteorite NWA 6257 [L3.2] polished slice 2.77g NEW Meteorite NWA 6258 [EL imb] unusual enstatite chondrite melt breccia 1.223g Meteorite NWA 6309 [EUC] fresh silica-rich eucrite 3.8g Meteorite NWA 6725 [CM2] rare carbonaceous fragment 0.04g Meteorite NWA 7490 [DIOGENITE] Johnstown like fresh 2.92g Meteorite MUNDRABILLA big etched endpiece 61.7g Bright Etching Meteorite MORASKO [IAB] Excellent etched endpiece 299g LOOK Meteorite NWA 7574 [EUCRITE] polished full slice 1.14g NEW Meteorite NWA 778 [H4] polished slice 1.53g meteorite from old times ! Meteorite NWA 869 [L4-6] 3x perfect ORIENTED specimen 8.6g Meteorite PULTUSK [H5] FALL 1868 Poland - recent find slices 1.10g Meteorite SAHARA 99477 [L5] Old historic meteorite from S... Meteorite SANTA CATHARINA [IAB-ung] historic meteorite from BRAZIL 2.76g Meteorite TAMDAKHT [H5] observed fall - slice 1.85g Meteorite TAZA [Iron Plessite] complete specimen 6.12g Meteorite WAGON MOUND [L6] USA 1932 historic slice 2.24g Meteorite WHITECOURT from Canada complete specimen 12.81g Meteorite ZAKLODZIE [Primitive Enstatite Achondrite] slice with crust 0.23g http://stores.ebay.com/PolandMET-Store?_trksid=p2047675.l2563 -[ MARCIN CIMALA ]-[ I.M.C.A.#3667 ]- http://www.Meteoryty.pl marcin(at)meteoryty.pl http://www.PolandMET.com marcin(at)polandmet.com http://www.Gao-Guenie.com GSM: +48 (793) 567667 [ Member of Polish Meteoritical Society ] __ Visit the Archives at http://www.meteorite-list-archives.com Meteorite-list mailing list Meteorite-list@meteoritecentral.com http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
[meteorite-list] AD: big 80lbs uruaçu and Sao Joao Nepomuceno
Hello all, I have a very nice big 80lbs Uruaçu and amazing S. J. Nepomuceno slices. Pictures on request. Email me at moutinho @ gmail.com Best Andre Moutinho __ Visit the Archives at http://www.meteorite-list-archives.com Meteorite-list mailing list Meteorite-list@meteoritecentral.com http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
