[meteorite-list] NPA 03-16-1983 Scientists believe meteorite comes from Mars

From: MARK BOSTICK <thebigcollector_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Wed Oct 27 10:28:07 2004
Message-ID: <BAY4-F4prhMOgRGkQ6m0001ff51_at_hotmail.com>

Paper: Syracuse Herald Journal
City: Syracuse, New York
Date: Tuesday, March 16, 1983
Page: A-2

Scientists believe meteorite comes from Mars

By John Noble Wilford
New York Times Service

     MINNEAPOLIS - A grayish-brown chunk of rock, a meteorite found on the
ice of Antarctica four years ago, has sent a shock wave of excitement
through the laboratories of planetary science Its drab appearance belies its
apparently exotic province. The rock very likely comes from Mars.
     If scientists are right about this, and the evidence is becoming more
and more persuasive, the meteorite would assume an importance in the history
of science comparable to that of the first moon rocks returned by the Apollo
astronauts. IT would be the first known object from another planet to reach
the Earth. It would afford scientists their first chance to study in detail
the chemistry and geology of Mars.
     Tests on pieces of the meteorite recently have erased most uncertainty
about its Martian origin. After an analysis of gases trapped in the
meteorite, Dr. Robert O. Pepin, a University of Minnesota physicists,
emerged from his laboratory last week and exclaimed: "It's from Mars. I
don't think there's any doubt."
     Later, checking his enthusiasm, Pepin modified his assessment, saying:
"The evidence is extremely strong, but still not conclusive."
     That seems to be the attitude of most scientists who have examined the
meteorite and we be comparing notes Thursday at the annual Lunar and
Planetary Conference in Houston. The rock's volcanic history, age and
chemistry all suggest it originated on Mars. The only serious problem,
according to scientists, is the question of how the rock could have escaped
Mars.
     Dr. Donald D. Bogard, a geologist at the Johnson Space Center in
Houston, custodian for this and other rare meteorites, said "impressive
geochemical evidence" had now moved physicists to think hard about
"circumstances in which you can get fragments off Mars."
     One promising idea is that an asteroid hit Mars with such force that it
not only tore rocky fragments out of the surface but it also turned
permafrost to steam, and that helped it propel the rocks to velocities that
enabled them to break free of Martian gravity.
     Such imaginative thinking follows several years of detective work in
which scientists followed a trail of clues extracted from the meteorite
itself to make a case for a likely Martian connection. At first they were
sure only that this was a most unusual meteorite.
     The 17.5 pound rock, eight inches in diameter, was picked up in 1979 at
the Elephant Moraine near Antarctica's McMurdo Sound by a team of American
scientists. They were there under the auspices of the National Science
Foundation, the Smithsonian Institution and the National Aeronautics and
Space Administration.

(end)

Clear Skies,
Mark Bostick
Wichita, Kansas
http://www.meteoritearticles.com
http://www.kansasmeteoritesociety.com
http://www.imca.cc

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Received on Wed 27 Oct 2004 10:27:46 AM PDT