[meteorite-list] NWA BIG QUESTION

From: drtanuki <drtanuki_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 09:52:20 2004
Message-ID: <3D6587A0.DA1B241A_at_tkc.att.ne.jp>

Dear Ray,
   There are 1) many nomads 2) no nomad trusts another, 3) batteries(expensive) and technology(dangerous if in the wrong area of the Sahara..ie.border
areas) are easy to sell for money, 4) they cannot see any personal gain from it since others will have their location, 5), and 6) they nomads may be the
source of the meteorites; but they are basically not the ones selling them to the foreign buyers. I tried to leave my GPS with a "nomad" basically seller
and he didn't want to bother to learn to use it.
Cultures are different and persons different. Go to the Sahara and then you can understand more clearly what I am saying.
   Your solution is perfectly logical; but maybe impossible. Dirk...Tokyo

impactearth_at_space.com wrote:

> Perhaps Dean could call up the Nomads on their cell
> phones, provided they are currently wondering the area
> of the desert with cell phone reception, and ask them
> to start documenting the finds. WHY HASN'T THIS
> HAPPENED? Maybe ship them a GPS unit and some graph
> paper to map out the strewn field? I mean, in this day
> and age of communication, the only reason the "nomads"
> aren't doing this is for 2 reasons. 1 being they are
> too lazy, 2 being, no one has asked them to. Think of
> the what could happen, the next NWA's to be found could
> acutally be documented, knowing the TKW, location, etc.
> Why isn't this happening? Everyone, collectors,
> dealers, NOMAD'S, could be making more money.
>
> Ray
>
> On Fri, 23 August 2002, drtanuki wrote:
>
> >
> > Dear List Members;
> > A meteorite cannot be paired unless analysis is
> done
> > to prove so. A
> > practice that is common in the market is to classify
> > one stone
> > (sometimes more) and call the remainder the same. The
> > fact that they
> > are &quot;called&quot; the same does not prove that
> they are the
> > same type of
> > meteorite or even paired. Dean's NWAs all look
> similar
> > due to the local
> > environment that they were found (probably within the
> > same region of the
> > Sahara).
> > Desert varnish or sand erosion covers most of the
> > meteorites and
> > rocks in the Sahara and other deserts. Desert varnish
> > is characteristic
> > in colour or texture depending on the local
> > environment; and even the
> > terrestrial rocks look similar in appearance.
> > I hope this answers some of the questions that I
> > have been asked to
> > respond to. Sincerely, Dirk Ross....Tokyo
> >
> >
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Received on Thu 22 Aug 2002 08:53:54 PM PDT