[meteorite-list] wanted

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From: Jerry A. Wallace <jwal2000_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 10:00:09 2004
Message-ID: <3D3DEEAB.60402_at_swbell.net>

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7/19/02    11:37PM 
drtanuki wrote: 
<blockquote type="cite" cite="mid3D38E91A.F1B69D20_at_tkc.att.ne.jp">
 <pre wrap="">Dear list members:
 Does anyone have books about tektites or articles about tektites that
they want to sell?

Also does anyone have glass or breccia from meteorite crater; glass
from odessa crater; or shatter cones from Sierra Madera? Thanks in
advance.

Sincerely, Dirk Ross...Tokyo

_____________________________________________</pre>
</blockquote>
 
 
Hello,  Mr. Ross, 
 
I must seize this rare opportunity to expound in an area of knowledge where
I do, 
indeed, have some degree of expertise, i.e., ' glass at the Odessa Meteor
Crater.' 
 
Many is the time I have made the comment, "Man, this place is covered with
glass!" 
The variety of shapes, colors, and sizes of glass at and around the crater
is astounding. 
 
There is an abundance of the 'classic' types and styles: Budweiser, Coors,
and Lone Star 
long necks. Then there are the copious quantities of the cheaper, squatty,
inelegant, latter 
day 'throw-a-way' types of glass (a bane on society, if you ask me.) These
include not 
only the pedestrian brands like Old Milwaukee (actually a really good beer),
Milwaukee's 
Best, Keystone, et al; but there are also some of the egalitarian brews such
as Carling 
Black Label, Michelob, Miller, and even an occasional fine import such as
Corona or 
Tecate (remember, we are on the Mexican- not the Canadian border!) 
 
One of the older brands of glass that can still be unearthed intact is the
Schlitz quart bottle. 
These were deposited eons ago (the fifties) when my high school buddies and
myself 
would buy a batch of these horrible tasting brews (they were relatively cheap
then- about 
45 cents per quart), drive to the crater, get sloshed, and ride pump jacks
while trying to 
shoot jack rabbits- into the wee hours of the night. I guess it was fun-
we did it a lot. But 
now, what I remember most is the combination of bad tasting warm beer, hot
nights, 
and the sickening, repetitive, sea-sickness inducing motion of those blasted
pump jacks. 
But the crater and its environs survived. 
 
The crater and its surroundings have even survived drilling machines, large
backhoes, shaft 
digging crews, big Caterpillars with scoops, a small army of diggers armed
with metal 
detectors and everything from posthole diggers, shovels, to garden trowels.
She's been a 
resilient old girl (the crater). I will post links to pictures of the 'new
and improved crater' 
and its new tourist facilities as soon as they have the 'grand opening' ceremonies
later in the 
summer. 
 
And then too, aside from the glass, there's the metal at the crater that
one must contend 
with. The tons of beer cans that have accumulated over the years is an impressive
sight, 
indeed. I should also mention the occasional refrigerator, washing machine,
and worn out 
pickup truck. Not too long ago there were even the remnants of a blown apart
trailer house 
piled out there. Over the years, I have found and saved many pounds of lead
from the 
crater and vicinty, almost every caliber from .22 to .45. In a way, it seems
that what has 
been taken- tons of iron meteorite- has been replaced in kind (sort of) with
metal beer 
cans, tons of scrap oilfield equipment, and other metallic scrap. I guess
it just reflects our 
west Texas nature of wanting to "give something back for that which was taken."
We're a 
sentimental bunch of misfits out here in the Chihuahuan desert sticks. 
 
To be honest, much of the mental picture one might derive from the above
descriptions 
is not accurate today. It was a true depiction for many years past; but someone,
I suspect 
the county, has gone in and performed an admirable clean-up around the crater.
Although 
it has lost much of its accumulated 'flavor', I would not be embarrassed
to take guests to 
the site. There is now an exit ramp, access ramp and overpass from Interstate
20 to the 
nice paved road to the crater ( which is maybe 2 1/2 to 3 miles south of
the Interstate). 
Sure beats the cow trails we used to drive on in the fifties. Please visit
if you have an 
opportunity. It isn't Arizona Crater, but it's the next best thing in the
southwest U.S. 
 
Now back to the original question... Mr. Ross, you were inquiring about tektites
and 
crater glass (fused silica.) I thought I knew the answer, but I thought I
would check to 
be sure I was correct before I made any statements. It's a good thing I did
because I 
would have related the story, as told by H.H. Nininger, about his search
for fused silica 
and shocked quartz at the Arizona Crater. (One of those-"I knew I heard it
somewhere" 
deals.) I checked through my extensive library (both books) and could find
no reference 
whatsoever about anything of this nature as relating to the Odessa crater.
I feel sure that 
there must have been some investigation for these things at the crater, but
I have yet to 
find reference to it. I suspect if fused silica does exist there that it
will be similar in size 
to the findings at the Arizona crater. There are also no references that
I can find relating 
to shocked quartz (another example of shock metamorphism.) 
 
I just got off the phone with Mr. Brent McAffee, Professor of Geology at
Odessa College. 
He couldn't remember any instances of 'glass' or shocked quartz being reported,
either. 
 
I will continue trying to find the answer for you (and myself.) I will be
making yet another 
trip to the crater soon and will bring in some subsurface soil samples from
various points 
in and around the crater (ala Nininger) and spend some time looking for the
suspects under 
the microscope. 
 
With any luck, maybe I can put you together a small vial of the little rascals
(if they exist). 
 
Best regards, 
 
Jerry A. Wallace 
Odessa, Texas 
 
PS... I trust that the learned members of this list will correct any misinformation
that 
I may have proffered here. Thanks for your patience. 
 
 
 
 
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Received on Tue 23 Jul 2002 08:02:51 PM PDT

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