[meteorite-list] Plainview Meteorite

From: Ron Baalke <baalke_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Wed Jul 27 18:40:32 2005
Message-ID: <200507272239.j6RMddt28246_at_zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>

http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=14930827&BRD=517&PAG=461&dept_id=473182&rfi=6

Space rock bounty up to $100 per pound
McCARTNEY TAYLOR
Plainview Daily Herald (Texas)
July 27, 2005

Found a strange rock in a rock free field? You may have an alien visitor
in your hands.

Plainview is known far and wide in the scientific community. Its fame is
earned from the meteorites found near it and the history behind those
meteorites.

While strange rocks had been found south of Plainview since the late
1800s, the history of the Plainview Meteorites began during World War I
in 1917. It was in that year that Harl Rightmire sent four strange
stones weighing 16 pounds to Dr. Merrill of the U.S. National Museum
(later renamed Smithsonian).

These stones were recognized as meteorites and Merrill collected five
more stones from Rightmire, then assumed there would be no further
material found.

Then along came Nininger. Harvey H. Nininger is a legendary figure in
meteorite history. Between the 1920s through the 1960s, he
single-handedly recovered more meteorites than any other meteorite
hunter in history.

In 1933, he ignored Merrill's theory that no more meteorites would be
found in the Plainview area and did a door-to-door canvas of farmers. By
the end of his second day, he had recovered 26 stones weighing more than
152 pounds.

His bonus offer of $1 a pound was very welcome to farmers during the
Great Depression. There were some farmers who reported they made more
off meteorites than their crops during the bad harvest of 1933.

The area was such a hotbed of meteorites that Nininger returned
regularly for decades, educating farmers about meteorites. This effort
netted more than 900 stones for over 1,500 pounds.

Old Plainview Herald clippings report that he was in the area in 1961
buying meteorites and was offering $3-$5 a pound. Some local residents
still remember him. Jeane Browning, owner of Browning Seed, was visited
by Nininger every summer for years. In fitting tradition, Browning's
son, John Browning, recently found a 5-pound Plainview meteorite.

The meteorites near Plainview are found predominately in two areas --
called strewnfields -- near Plainview. A large meteorite exploded and
fell over these areas centuries ago, leaving hundreds of stones. Not all
meteorites found near Plainview are found in the strewnfields, but most
are found inside these elliptical areas. (see page 1 map)

Now we come to the rest of the story - the current hunt. Two generations
have come and gone since Nininger educated farmers on meteorite
identification. The average citizen wouldn't know these odd heavy, rusty
rocks are meteorites. Below is a description of how to identify them. It
is up to the citizens of Hale County to find more pieces for science.

The best way to find a meteorite is look for rusty brown rocks and carry
a small magnet. Expect them to be the size from a pecan to a pumpkin.
Larger is possible, but its best to look for small pieces and you won't
miss the larger ones. The author is putting out a reward to anyone who
finds more fragments of this meteorite.

I call on all farmers to look while plowing and after heavy rains.
Farmlands are a known hot spot for finding meteorites. Meteorites last
for centuries on the ground, and weathering slowly buries them. It's the
humble plow that is responsible for uncovering thousands of meteorites
from their earthen tombs. Hundreds of Texas meteorites have been found
this way.

Identifying a meteorite:

Meteorites are not the glowing kryptonite lumps you remember from
cartoons. In fact, our ideas from Superman may be why most people don't
recognize meteorites when they see them. Meteorites are not porous like
lava rocks; they look more like rusty limestone rocks.

There are three types of meteorites:

1. Stone

2. Iron

3. Stoney-Iron

Normally, farmers will plow up a stone meteorite. Most of the time,
these meteorites are tossed into the "rock pile" or a ditch, to be lost
to science. If the farmer is curious about an oddly heavy stone, it
might be saved to be identified.

Stone Types

This is the type most commonly found. A stone meteorite is a rock with
about 25 percent iron in it. This will make it unnaturally heavy, which
is the first clue to notice.

Naturally, the iron in it will rust in moist climates and it will simply
look like a rusty rock on the ground. The outside will be dark brownish
rust color, with the inside being either black, ash grey, brown, or even
white. Testing is easy.

Test #1 -- Does it attract a magnet? Put a magnet (A refrigerator magnet
is fine) on a string and bring it close to the suspected meteorite.

Test #2 -- Is it heavier than a normal rock? Meteorites will commonly
seem twice as heavy relative to native limestone rock and is solid
without holes or bubbles.

Test #3 -- Is it rusty brown or rusty black? The iron will rust after a
few years and change a flat black meteorite to rusty brown.

Test #4 -- Are metal flakes present? Hematite is the most common
"meteor-wrong." It passes Tests 1-3 but when you grind Hematite with a
diamond file it just produces lots of red dust. If it's a meteorite, you
may see small specks of shiny metal. You barely have to grind the rock
to see this, 1/32 of an inch is plenty.

Iron Types

Test #1 -- Does it attract a magnet?

Test #2 -- Are the edges rounded and smooth? Meteorites have no sharp
edges; the fiery entry to earth melted them smooth.

Test # 3 -- Is it solid and lacking bubble holes? Needless to say, iron
meteorites are very heavy and solid.

Test #4 (Optional) -- Does it have "thumbprints" on it? Small dimples
form on the outside of some meteorites. These look like someone squished
their thumbprint into soft clay. Not all meteorites have these.

I encourage every farmer to keep a small magnet stuck to his tractor.
The magnet test on a suspicious heavy rock in the field will quickly
filter out the "meteorwrongs" from ones worth examining closer at home.
Remember that meteorites belong to the property owner where they are found.

While meteorites may just be heavy rusty rocks, they still have value to
universities and museums. To encourage recovery of more meteorites; the
author is putting a bounty of up to $100 a pound (Sure beats $1 a
pound). A recovery bounty is an 80-year-old tradition from the days of
Dr. Nininger, the father of modern meteoritics.

If you think you have found a meteorite let us know, we request that any
possible meteorite pass tests 1, 2 and 3 before you call. The author can
be reached at mt_at_blackbartdata.com or at 512/773-7811.

Sources:

 o Review of the Plainview, Texas Meteorite Finds with Additional Data on
Strewnfield Distribution Patterns, Dod & Sipiera

 o Proceeding of the U.S. National Museum, 1917, Merrill

 o The Catalogue of Meteorites, 2001, Grady

(McCartney Taylor has authored numerous articles educating the public on
meteorite and their recovery. He was on Lubbock TV in June lecturing on
the Lubbock "Super Cluster." He is an avid field researcher for
meteorite recovery, traveling throughout Texas and Mexico. He's been a
member of the Meteoritical Society which focuses on planetary sciences,
and he's currently active with the International Meteorite Collectors
Association, www.imca.cc. His current goal is to renew the late Dr.
Nininger's meteorite awareness program throughout Texas.)
Received on Wed 27 Jul 2005 06:39:39 PM PDT