[meteorite-list] Shirokovsky authenticity questions? (and Stable Isotopes)

From: Paul Heinrich <lenticulina1_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 10:13:11 2004
Message-ID: <20030427233528.64400.qmail_at_web21405.mail.yahoo.com>

On Sun, 27 Apr 2003 13:41:53 -0500
Rosemary Hackney wrote:

>I bought a small piece of Shirokiovsky ( .2 g )
>was not so expensive.. ( 11.00 I think ) anyway.
>it has metal and olivine crystals and looked to
>me like Brahin. Just wondered. If it indeed
>is Shirokovsky, It looks like a pallasite to my
>ignorant eyes.

and on 27 Apr 2003 19:01:38 UT and
in "Shirokovsky", bernd.pauli_at_paulinet wrote:

>When I got my slice some time ago, I didn't know
>anything about it possibly being a "doubtful
>case", but this was exactly my very first
>thought: This looks suspiciously like Brahin -
>though on a smaller, more delicate scale. I
>still like my wafer-thin slice even if it is
>not what it is supposed to be.

I have to wonder if stable isotope ratios could
not only be used to differentiate meteorites from
various terrestrial materials, but also determine
if pieces came from the same meteorite. One would
expect stable isotope values, e.g, oxygen isotopes
from meteorites to cluster within a range.
However, do oxygen isotope values from different
meteorites vary enough within that range where
different meteorites would have slightly but
distinctly different values and samples from
the same meteorite have exactly the same value?
If this is the case, a person can take samples
from an alleged Shirokiovsky and a Brahin
and see if the values differ enough for them
to be from different meteorites or whether they
are exactly the same and likely from the same
meteorite.

Using other stable isotopes, e.g., hydrogen, the
cross-plotting of data might one be able to
determine whether individual fragments came from
the same meteorite?

Just Some Thoughts

Paul
Baton Rouge, LA


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Received on Sun 27 Apr 2003 07:35:28 PM PDT