[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]

ALH84001 and Me - Part 2


To continue with the tale...

      A little over a week later I went up to NASA headquarters to
visit the archives, hoping to find some materials which I could use
for one of the volumes of my "History of Cosmonautics".  When I
arrived, Nadine, the archive's receptionist, smiled and greeted me,  
     "Hi! You always seem to show up when something interesting is
going to happen."
     "Of course", I told her. "Funny how life works
sometimes." Actually I had no idea what was going on, but I was not
going to let her know that.
     "Where is everybody?", I asked.
     "They've been trying to get here.  Lee's out, 
and Roger's trying to fly back for tommorow's briefing."
      With that, I went over to the files, but was so distracted that
after piddling around for a few minutes I left, went outside, and fed
the parking meter as many quarters as it would take.  Whatever was
going on, I was going to be there for a few hours more yet.
      Heading back into the building, I found a woman
academic desperately trying to gain admittance to the 
NASA News Room.  Listening in, I gathered she was from the Hayden
Planetarium.  I began talking with her as several of her entreaties
were rejected in turn.      She told me that the staff of the Hayden
Planetarium had been down at the Smithsonian Intitution for a
conference, which had been suddenly canceled due to a dramatic
announcement which was going to be made
the next day.
   After a final rejection, I told  that I would go up to the News
Room and find out what was going on.  We agreed to meet with along
with the rest of her party ar
a nearby restaurant.
     Dwayne Brown was now acting head of the NASA press
office, and as he ducked outside his office I asked him
what was going on.  He told me that something important had been found
on Mars, and that Leonard David had a piece on it in "Space News".  I
went over and picked up 
a copy of "Space News" that was on a counter nearby, and couldn't find
what he was talking about.  I asked
what Leonard David piece they were talking about, and 
I think it was Patrice who pointed me to a one paragraph item that
Leonard had done.  It said that 
Dr. McKay had found organic compounds in a meteorite
from Mars.
     So I went back into Dwayne's office and sat down.
"Is this it?" I asked. "Is this the big news item?"
Dwayne just smiled, and told me the news conference would be tomorrow.
 "Look", I said, "I already know about this, I talked with Dr. McKay
myself, I've got 
a long drive up here.  It's a six hour round trip, so 
there has to be more than organic compounds."
    "They've found something else."
    "What else?"
     Dwayne smiled. "A fossil. I can't tell you anything more, you'll
have to come back tommorow."
     So I grabbed a copy of "Space News" and went downstairs and over
to the restaurant where I had agreed to meet with the woman from the
Hayden Planetarium.  By now the rest of the Hayden Planetarium 
staff had shown up, including its director, one of the few leading
African American space researchers I have ever met.  
     And there, over drinks with them, I went through everything that
had occured over the past couple of weeks.
     After drinks, they departed, and I returned to the
News Room.  By now ABC News had broken the press 
embargo on the story, and the press room staff was
mad about it.  Dwayne was on the phone chewing somebody 
at ABC out, amd there was no question for the time 
being of helping ABC out with that other story they 
were working on.
    I left and started back down the interstate for  home, where I
would refresh myself and get ready for the next day's drive.

     Now if Leonard had not taken Dr. McKay aside, 
interrupting my conversation with Dr. McKay, but instead had joined
us, I myself would have asked Dr. McKay whether he had found more.  Or
if Leonard had been more discrete, he could have simply continued to
listen in on the conversation I was having with Dr. McKay.
      But then it's funny how life works sometimes.  







     
    



_________________________________________________________
DO YOU YAHOO!?
Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com

----------
Archives located at:
http://www.meteoritecentral.com/list_best.html

For help, FAQ's and sub. info. visit:
http://www.meteoritecentral.com/mailing_list.html
----------