[meteorite-list] Names and synonyms (was ...Mali or Argelia...)

From: Alan Rubin <aerubin_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Mon, 22 Oct 2007 15:51:53 -0800
Message-ID: <00aa01c81506$85a37bd0$bc246180_at_SINOITE>

And, of course, if the name is mis-spelled originally, the mis-spelling
persists as the official name: Forrest 001, Dyarrl Island (which should be
Dyaul or Djaul), etc.
Alan Rubin

----- Original Message -----
From: "Jeff Grossman" <jgrossman at usgs.gov>
To: <meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com>
Sent: Monday, October 22, 2007 3:25 PM
Subject: [meteorite-list] Names and synonyms (was ...Mali or Argelia...)


> Here is what I can tell everybody about official names and synonyms.
>
> Every meteorite is given one, and only one, official name. This is the
> name that must be used in publications. There are no rules for how the
> name is chosen, only guidelines. Mainly the guidelines call for naming
> the meteorite after a nearby geographic feature that can be found on maps.
> If there are competing candidates for the name, weight may be given to
> many factors in choosing which to bestow, including existing usage among
> scientists and collectors, finder's privileges, distribution of specimens,
> and a little politics now and then.
>
> There are no rules at all concerning synonyms, although nowadays these are
> often vetted by the NomCom too. In general, these are any other names by
> which specimens of a meteorite may have been known throughout history.
> Synonyms are NOT official names. Sometimes you see "officially
> recognized" synonyms, meaning the NomCom has published it, but it's still
> not an official name. The NomCom usually tries to recognize synonyms when
> they have appeared in scientific publications, press reports, well-known
> catalogs, or when the meteorite is widely sold or traded under another
> name.
>
> One grayish area in all of this is "named masses," like the Ahnighito,
> Agpalilik, Woman, Dog, and other masses of Cape York. Some of these names
> are so engrained that even scientists who have long studied them don't
> realize they aren't the official names, like Filomena. But these are also
> unofficial names: the official name for Filomena is North Chile.
> Nevertheless, the NomCom encourages the preservation of names of such
> masses on specimen labels and in catalogs, as they convey potentially
> important information about the provenance of a particular subsample. A
> good way of doing it would be to say "North Chile (Filomena mass)".
> Conversely, there is little value in preserving archaic names that do not
> carry specimen information, e.g., you would never refer to a Kirin mass of
> Jilin.
>
> jeff
>
>
>
> Dr. Jeffrey N. Grossman phone: (703) 648-6184
> US Geological Survey fax: (703) 648-6383
> 954 National Center
> Reston, VA 20192, USA
>
>
> ______________________________________________
> Meteorite-list mailing list
> Meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
> http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
Received on Mon 22 Oct 2007 07:51:53 PM PDT