[meteorite-list] Sulfide-slag

From: Walter Branch <branchw_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 10:01:30 2004
Message-ID: <001501c20c36$8940fc60$fed83fd0_at_cc516468a>

Hello Bob, Dave, Troy and Everyone,

Interesting meteorwrong you have there.

In Nininger fashion, I have trained my three year old daughter in the fine
art of examining rocks for possible meteorite candidates and one day last
week, when I picked her up from day care, she handed me this "monster rock:"

http://www.branchmeteorites.com/temp/lbr.jpg

This looks a lot like the lbr/slag which Bob and Troy have noted. I don't
have an image of the inside yet ( I ground it yesterday) but it is not
vesicular, otherwise it looks and lot like your lbr specimen. Glancing at
the interior reveals that it is definitely NOT a meteorite. Although it is
slightly magnetic it is "underweight" for a meteorite.

Now, as to the term "monster rock." There is an old 1950s sci-fi movie
called the Monolith Monsters in which a small town in the California desert
is visited by a meteorite but this meteorite has some rather strange
properties. It grows vertically when exposed to water and eventually
topples and shatters, thus producing more meteorites, which grow when
exposed to water, etc... Also, the meteorites have the menacing property of
removing silicon from human skin, thus turning it human victim to stone.
The whole town is threatened but in the end the local state geologist saves
the day.

It is so corny that I love the movie! My daughter and I call it the
"monster rock" movie and she looks for "monster rocks" wherever she goes.
She loves the movie as much as I do and frequently goes to sleep watching
it!

Rebekah is turning into a 1950's sci-fi film buff, like her dad. Here are
our terms for some other movies we like:

The Creature from the Black Lagoon = monster claw
It Came from Outer Space = monster eye
War of the Worlds = monster desk lamp
etc...

-Walter


-----------------------------------------------
Walter Branch, Ph.D.
Branch Meteorites
322 Stephenson Ave., Suite B
Savannah, GA 31405 USA
www.branchmeteorites.com
----- Original Message -----
From: "David Freeman" <dfreeman_at_fascination.com>
To: "Robert Verish" <bolidechaser_at_yahoo.com>
Cc: "Meteorite-list Meteoritecentral" <meteorite-list_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Sent: Tuesday, June 04, 2002 9:15 PM
Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] Sulfide-slag


> Dear Robert and List;
> I have always marveled at the educational value of a good meteorwrong
> and posts such as Robert's Sulfide-slag are just magnificent sluthing.
> My favorite meteorwrong currently is the 20 pound basalt chunk found
> near a volcanic area that this feller' hauls down to Denver and other
> places, hoping that it is a lunar basalt....mights well go big guns!
>
> Thanks for a real educational post Robert! More, More!
> Best,
> Dave Freeman
>
> Robert Verish wrote:
>
> >I apologize for this Off-Topic subject, but I would
> >like to take this opportunity to personally thank Troy
> >Bell, for his efforts in trying to determine the
> >origin of a particular type of meteor-wrong that is
> >commonly seen on eBay. Troy found his first specimen
> >in the gravel of a parking lot near where he lives in
> >Texas. When Troy told me that the gravel was a
> >typical "slag", I told him to try and find more of
> >this LBR (Little Black Rock) and to take some samples
> >of the slag gravel. He found 2 more "little black
> >rocks", which he sent to me, along with samples of the
> >slag gravel.
> >
> >My examination confirmed that the LBRs and the slag
> >have a common origin. In addition, these LBRs are
> >made from the same material that I have encountered
> >numerous times from people wanting their "meteorites"
> >identified. And I'm sure many on this List have
> >encountered this, as well. Lately, a third of the
> >meteor-wrongs that I have encountered are of this
> >"sulfide-rich" material. Although there appears to be
> >various sources for this material, I have always
> >contended that this was waste material from an ore
> >smelting process [slag]. But now, Troy's observant
> >eye has found the "smoking gun" evidence that confirms
> >that this material is a slag.
> >
> >This confirmation also raises the concern that some of
> >these LBRs could have elevated concentrations of
> >arsenic and lead.
> >
> >The following images show a cut surface of this
> >material. Because of the above concern, BE ADVISED -
> >to never DRY cut or grind this material, and to treat
> >the cuttings and coolant with caution.
> >
> >Image #1:
> ><http://www.geocities.com/bolidechaser/troybell.jpg>
> >
> >The interior "looks like" a natural sulfide mineral
> >with a highly specular, metallic luster. But it is
> >not a metal. Mostly crystalline with needle-shaped
> >laths (an atypical crystal habit for sulfides). The
> >exterior has a patina. Having been exposed to the
> >forces of weathering, and over time, the sulfide-rich
> >rock has formed a black tarnish.
> >
> >Image #2:
> ><http://www.geocities.com/bolidechaser/tbell-cu.jpg>
> >
> >Close-up of the cut surface. Locally vesicular;
> >cavities will show cleavage for these synthetic
> >(man-made) crystals. There are some inclusions of
> >melted silicates.
> >
> >As mentioned earlier, this kind of meteor-wrong has
> >long been seen on eBay, but typically being auctioned
> >as "Arizona ?? Meteorite"!!
> >I couldn't find any current "meteorite" auction like
> >this, but this "mineral" auction looks like the same
> >kind of material, but without the black tarnish:
> >
> ><http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2108278605>
> >
> >Now that it has been identified, my curiosity about
> >this material has been satisfied, and I will now move
> >on to the next "mystery rock" (hopefully, it will be a
> >real meteorite;-). But in the meanwhile, it may prove
> >beneficial (since this stuff is so widespread) to have
> >this "identified" material on a meteor-wrong web page
> >in order to educate future meteor-wrong sellers.
> >
> >Bob V.
> >
> >
> >__________________________________________________
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> >
> >______________________________________________
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> >
> >
>
>
>
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Received on Tue 04 Jun 2002 10:13:07 PM PDT