[meteorite-list] Murchison - A smelly Rock

From: Greg Redfern <gredfern_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Tue, 5 Dec 2006 08:20:01 -0500
Message-ID: <001501c71870$11f60c90$6500a8c0_at_gregufeopu010a>

All,

   Being the proud owner of an incredible fusion crusted 80g oriented
Murchison from Jim Strope, I can attest to the "smell" described. I keep
this specimen, along with a 1.5g specimen, under a clean glass bell jar.
When I clean the jar I "smell" its' interior and there is a wonderful
aroma that is almost bourbon-like in nature. The jar did not have this
aroma when I bought it and it sits on a glass shelf. My guess is that
the 92+ amino acids with the 13% water by content make for a meteoritic
mixer.

  All the best and Happy Holidays to everyone.

Greg Redfern
NASA JPL Solar System Ambassador
http://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/ambassador/index.ht
ml
WHAT'S UP?: THE SPACE PLACE
http://www.wtopnews.com/?sid=600113&nid=421


-----Original Message-----
From: meteorite-list-bounces at meteoritecentral.com
[mailto:meteorite-list-bounces at meteoritecentral.com] On Behalf Of
bernd.pauli at paulinet.de
Sent: Tuesday, December 05, 2006 7:18 AM
To: Meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
Subject: [meteorite-list] Murchison - A smelly Rock

HAAG ROBERT (1997) Field Guide of Meteorites
(10th + 12th Anniversary Editions, 1991 + 1997, p. 36):

Betty Maslin, a Murchison, Australia resident, displays the smelly rocks
that
landed on the outskirts of town one Sunday morning in September, 1969.
Detonations and "hissing" noises were heard when the fireball exploded
and
smoke rings were seen hanging in the air. Some 700 kilos of stones
rained
out of the sky, covering 33 square kilometers, and stinking up the town
with
the smell of methylated spirits. (Betty and her father found the two
largest
pieces by the road.) The jar Mrs. Maslin is holding had been sealed for
ten
years, and when I opened it, the smell of alcohol and ether was still
strong
enough to nearly put me under.

Hello List,

For those list members who don't have these field guides, I'm going to
send
the picture from Bob's Field Guide to Jeff Kuyken who can then upload it
for
everyone to have a look. Thanks in advance, Jeff!

Cheers,

Bernd

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Received on Tue 05 Dec 2006 08:20:01 AM PST