[meteorite-list] Unclassified NWAs

From: Michel <Michel_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 09:42:03 2004
Message-ID: <00b301c08571$76fc0380$59b5fea9_at_nwc.fr>

Well said.

Michel

----- Message d'origine -----
De : Matson, Robert <ROBERT.D.MATSON_at_saic.com>
À : Meteorite List <meteorite-list_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Envoyé : lundi 22 janvier 2001 22:28
Objet : [meteorite-list] Unclassified NWAs


> Hi All,
>
> Don't have anything to add that hasn't already been said by
> another list member regarding the value and/or desirability
> of NWA meteorites. However, one MAJOR issue that I don't
> believe has been discussed here in detail is fraud. I'm
> sure a lot of people have put two and two together, but may
> have been reluctant to mention it in writing for fear of
> a self-fulfilling prophecy. Unfortunately, when money is
> involved, science and ethics can easily take a backseat
> to greed. That's why I think we need to attack this
> potential (and in all likelihood, probable) problem head-on
> to see if any preventative measures can be taken.
>
> The specific fraud issue I'm referring to is NWA emigration
> coupled with "rediscovery". As an active field investigator,
> I am concerned about the large number of undocumented,
> unclassified Moroccan "bazaar" meteorites coming on the
> market, and the possibility of unscrupulous individuals
> attempting to use them as domestic meteorite "poseurs".
>
> Perhaps the weathering of Saharan meteorites is sufficiently
> distinctive that it acts as a brand for place of origin. If
> not, then meteorite importers bear some responsibility in
> helping to devise methods to curtail this type of fraud.
> Field investigators such as myself already use insitu
> photodocumentation to help prove pedigree, but it wouldn't
> take much to fake this. Caliche, distinctive weathering,
> or interior indigenous mineralization along crack boundaries
> may be the only ways to prove that a meteorite did not come
> from northwest Africa.
>
> I look forward to any corrections or additions to this
> important topic that our list members have to offer.
>
> Cheers,
> Rob
>
>
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Received on Tue 23 Jan 2001 02:07:06 PM PST