[meteorite-list] Free meteorites

From: MexicoDoug_at_aol.com <MexicoDoug_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Tue Jun 22 12:55:05 2004
Message-ID: <1e0.23abee2c.2e09be64_at_aol.com>

Nice to know you anyone can collect real meteorites in your back yard for
free (see below). Now until Sunday is a great time to collect some Bootids! I
wonder, though if the magnetism of the cometary parent bodies is enough to be
magnetic. Maybe they are a mix ejected micrometeorites that previously
impacted the comet? Also, at the speeds the particles fall, do they really reach the
surface during the showers or is there a significant gap for most?

Also, if one is somehow able to classify a grain of dust so collected and
send in a half a particle for curation, would it be allowed to be a named
meteorite? Does the size matter to the Met-Soc, or do they only care how well you
classify it?

Saludos

http://www.kyes-world.com/micrometeorites.htm

Collecting Micro-Meteorites;

The tiniest members of our solar system are very small metallic or rocky
particles. They are only a few microns in diameter (a micron is .00001 cm). It is
estimated that up to 100 tons of micrometeorites enter the earth's atmosphere
every day. For the most part, they are too small to burn up in Earth's
atmosphere like their larger siblings, meteors do. They just float gently down until
they reach the surface of our planet!
More micrometeorites are found in the atmosphere after a meteor shower. The
particles' light weight sometimes keep them suspended in the air until they are
washed out by rain or snow. They can be collected from the rain or snow
because they usually have some traces of iron in them, causing them to be attracted
to a magnet. Try to collect rain water before and after a major meteor
shower. That way you will be able to measure the increase caused by the shower! This
is what you do;
 
Materials Needed:

Bucket or pan to collect rain water in, lined with a plastic bag
2 or 3 cups of distilled water
Magnet inside a plastic bag
Magnetized needle
Magnifying glass
Microscope with about 100X magnification
Microscope slides
LOTS of patience !!!
What to do:

 Have a bucket or pan ready to put out in an open area when it rains. (Wider
is Better!) Your meteor collecting pan needs to be lined with a VERY CLEAN
(new) heavy plastic bag. This is because you don't want to accidentally start out
with any metallic remnants that were here on Earth all along! Place the pan
in an open area, where the rain will fall in without first bouncing off of
anything like buildings or trees.
 Try to plan to catch one rain water sample before the meteor shower and
another the first time it rains after the meteor shower.
 Next make your meteorite collector. This is a magnet (the strongest one you
can find is best), inside a plastic bag. Slowly sweep the bottom of the pan
with the collector. Because the metallic meteorites have iron in them they will
be attracted to the magnet. You have it in the bag so that - (1) you won't
mistake pieces of metal already on the magnet for your little micrometeorites and
(2) you don't want to loose them when they want to stay stuck to the magnet.
They will be REALLY - REALLY SMALL so don't get discouraged if it looks like
there is nothing there!
Now put the magnet (still in the bag) gently into a pot (lined with heavy
aluminum foil) of distilled water. (Don't use more distilled water than you need.
You will have to boil it off later.) Remove the magnet without exposing it to
the water. The particles will fall off when you swirl the bag in the water.
 Re-sweep the rain water several times in this way, adding the sweepings to
the same pan of distilled water. Take your time when you do this part, holding
the bag snug against the magnet so you don't knock pieces off that you have
swept up.
 Now you need to remove the water. This may be done by boiling it in the
aluminum-lined pan. Always have an adult supervise this step !!!
 When the remaining particles are dry remove them with a magnetized needle.
(A needle may be magnetized by rubbing it on a magnet several times in the same
direction.) Put them on a slide and look at them under a microscope. A 100X
microscope is necessary to examine some particles, but a magnifying glass is
enough for the larger ones.
 The particles collected before the shower are your control group. Although
some of these may be meteorites it is likely that most are from industrial
waste. By comparing them with the group taken after the shower you can more easily
sort out the ones that look different than the first batch. Like their larger
cousins, it is often a guessing game unless you have a chemical analysis
done, which I sure don't know how to do! Generally, though, they may have burned
or melted-looking parts. They are often clumpy-looking, like Rocky Road ice
cream. There also may be crystalline structures.
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Received on Tue 22 Jun 2004 12:55:00 PM PDT