[meteorite-list] Cali chondrite fell extremely cold!

From: Jerry <grf2_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Mon, 30 Jul 2007 20:21:57 -0400
Message-ID: <CE6CD1FD9122402ABDBDA3F7FEEE8927_at_Notebook>

I have and thought about it but never said anything. Glad that fact is out
for some common sense consideration.
Jerry Flaherty
----- Original Message -----
From: <lebofsky at lpl.arizona.edu>
To: "Charlie Devine" <moonrock25 at webtv.net>
Cc: "Robert Woolard" <meteoritefinder at yahoo.com>;
<meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com>
Sent: Monday, July 30, 2007 7:07 PM
Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] Cali chondrite fell extremely cold!


> Hi All:
>
> My two cents.
>
> We had are usual "asteroid lunch" today (discuss them and other related
> topics, not eat them). I brought up this topic. Among others there was me,
> an asteroid person (used to do them modeling of asteroids and, yes, they
> are cold inside since the "typical" asteroid probably spends much of its
> time further from the Sun than the Earth); a meteorite person, Tim
> Swindle; and an impact person, Jay Melosh. We all agreed that meteorites
> will be cold (or at least very cool) when they land. The effects of
> heating due to entry and fusion crust formation should be "gone" in tens
> of seconds (while they are still falling). So their temperature on the
> ground should reflect their ambient temperature in space.
>
> By the way, they had never heard of the (very good) suggestion that a
> person touching a very cold meteorite may actually think that the burning
> sensation is heat and not cold.
>
> Larry
>
> On Mon, July 30, 2007 2:31 pm, Charlie Devine wrote:
>> Hello Robert and list,
>>
>>
>> Robert wrote:
>>
>>
>>> "If you touch something that is
>>> extremely cold (such as dry ice), you feel a burning sensation. Too
>>> much
>>> cold becomes too hot."
>>
>> Robert further wrote:
>>
>>
>>> I wonder if people who claim that
>>> meteorites were hot to the touch, were simply mistaking the cold
>>> temperature as being hot.
>>
>> I've long suspected that was the case, Robert.
>> Richard Pearl, in his 1975 book "Fallen from Heaven: Meteorites and
>> Man", reports the following regarding the fall of the Forest City, Iowa
>> meteorite on 5/2/1890:
>>
>> "This brilliant fireball, 'sputtering though its
>> course like fireworks' traveled eastward, leaving a smoke trail and a
>> noise
>> like 'heavy cannonading' and a 'rushing sound'
>> or 'unearthly hissing'. As at Estherville, a contested ballgame was in
>> progress at the time. Although it was reported to be hot, a boy who
>> picked
>> up a piece from an unsinged stack of straw complained that it was 'so
>> cold
>> that it burned his hand'".
>>
>> Best wishes,
>> Charlie
>>
>>
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>
>
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Received on Mon 30 Jul 2007 08:21:57 PM PDT