[meteorite-list] Prospecting for Space Rocks

From: Darren Garrison <cynapse_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Sun, 28 Jan 2007 19:51:48 -0500
Message-ID: <v7hqr25q2ns4v34691ks91ikaepg27560f_at_4ax.com>

http://www.americanprofile.com/article/20536.html

Prospecting for Space Rocks

by Marti Attoun
Steve Arnold, 40, drives across a farm field near Haviland, Kan. (pop. 612),
listening intently to the hum from the home-built metal detector pulled behind
his all-terrain vehicle. Suddenly, Arnold stops to listen as a whine emanates
from the machine. Loud and annoying, the sound is sweet music to the meteorite
hunter?s ears.
Something metal is buried beneath the wheat stubble and, if Arnold is lucky, it
will be another rock from outer space.

?Forty-nine times out of 50, it?s what we meteorite hunters affectionately call
a meteor ?wrong,?? says Arnold, describing the hodgepodge of metal objects?iron
wagon wheels, coyote traps, broken plows and pitchforks?he?s unearthed while
searching for celestial treasures in Kiowa County. But Arnold has hit the
jackpot, too.

In 2005, Arnold followed the whine of his metal detector to a 1,430-pound
meteorite that fell to Earth more than a thousand years ago, originating in the
asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. After digging with a shovel and picking
up stronger signals, he brought in a backhoe to unearth the massive chunk of
iron, embedded with green crystals, the largest meteorite of its kind found on
the planet.

?You can have absolutely no interest in meteorites and see this one and it?s
?Wow,?? says Arnold, one of only a few professional space-rock hunters in the
world. ?It?s extremely gorgeous. It?s nature?s art.?

The rare rock, which has been exhibited at museums in Kansas and Texas and at
the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show in Arizona, is for sale. ?We?d like to get at
least $1 million,? says Arnold, noting that potential customers include
meteorite collectors, museums and corporations that might want to use the
extraterrestrial rock for promotions.

Meteorites can fetch from $1 to $100,000 a pound, depending on their rarity and
size. Arnold has sold several of his more valuable finds for $25,000 and a slice
of a rare moon rock for $40,000. Arnold first became interested in space rocks
in 1991 after reading a book on how to find treasure with a metal detector. He
researched meteorite sites throughout Kansas and found maps pinpointing where
they had been found across the state. Within weeks, he was searching a field
near Admire, Kan. (pop. 177). While he didn?t find any space rocks, he didn?t
return home empty-handed, either. A farmer gave him a 4-ounce meteorite, which
he sold for $121.

During the last 15 years, Arnold has traveled the globe in search of meteorites.
He discovered his first in Chile in 1993 and since has found more than a
thousand space rocks in the United States and abroad.

While traveling through Greensburg, Kan. (pop. 1,574), in 2005, he stopped to
tour the Celestial Museum, home of a rare 1,000-pound meteorite discovered in a
local field in 1949. Arnold speculated that he could find more with his powerful
electronic detector, which can sense metal objects 15 feet underground.

?People thought the area had been tapped out 50 years ago, but I just had a
feeling,? he says. After visiting with local farmers who agreed to let him hunt
in their fields between crops, Arnold and investor Phil Mani, a geologist and
attorney in San Antonio, formed Brenham Meteorite Co. They secured exclusive
meteorite hunting rights on thousands of acres of farmland and, within weeks,
hit heavenly pay dirt. Landowners receive up-front payments as well as royalties
if a meteorite is found on their property.

Arnold, who lives part of the year in Kingston, Ark., bought a home in
Greensburg to be closer to his meteorite hunting grounds. Sometimes his wife,
Qynne, and home-schooled daughters, Lauren, 14, and Kelsey, 9, join him on his
quest. Lauren recalls one trip in 2003 when her dad heard on the news that a
meteorite had showered Park Forest, Ill., and hurled a rock through a roof. The
family jumped in the car.

?We had these long broomsticks and taped magnets to them and walked along the
streets with our sticks,? Lauren says. ?We?d find meteorites and put them in our
pockets.?

Arnold expects to spend the next two years exploring farm fields around
Greensburg in hopes of finding another out-of-this-world treasure, rather than a
pioneer?s buried plowshare. ?Every time I go out there, I?m an optimist,? he
says.
Received on Sun 28 Jan 2007 07:51:48 PM PST