[meteorite-list] Witnessed Falls and Hammers - warning, LONG.

From: Michael Gilmer <michael_w_gilmer_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Mon, 9 Mar 2009 08:56:43 -0700 (PDT)
Message-ID: <968793.9240.qm_at_web58408.mail.re3.yahoo.com>

Hi Listees! :)

I was compiling my latest inventory list, when I noticed that my
collection of witnessed falls and hammers is growing to a
semi-respectable number - albeit still quite small compared to some
of the envious collections other list members have.

So I thought I would ask the list - how many witnessed falls and
how many hammers do you have in your collection?

Right now, I have 25 witnessed falls and 11 hammers :

Hammer falls -

Allende
Carancas
Claxton
Gao Guenie
Holbrook
Moss
Murchison
New Orleans
Park Forest
Peekskill
Weston

Other witnessed falls -

Bassikounou
Chergach
Ensisheim
Juvinas
Norton County
Shalka
Sikhote Alin
Tagish Lake
Tamdakht
Tatahouine
Udei Station
"West" Texas
Zag
Zagami

This is only the beginning of my obsession with certain witnessed
falls and hammers. I only collect recent falls that happened
after I started collecting in late 2006. So, basically from
Bassikounou forward is fair game. This is an arbitrary starting
point, but it has meaning for me and gives me a firm boundary
line to base my fall collection on. I am missing quite a few
recent falls - mainly the hard to acquire ones like Cali, Berduc,
Buzzard Coulee and others which are not legally on the market or
are too rare/expensive for me to afford at the moment.

As for my hammers - I have no conditions on collecting them. Any
meteorite or fall that struck something is fair game and I want it.
The more interesting the story behind a given hammer, the more
interested I am in acquiring it. Claxton is awesome. Imagine
how small a mailbox is. Even when considering there are millions
of postal boxes around the world, what are the chances of a
meteorite hitting one? To me, that is interesting. Peekskill
is another great hammer - it creamed a Chevy Malibu. Of course,
Peekskill may have been more interesting if it had struck an
occupied vehicle, a police car, a hearse, or some other exceptional
circumstance. But until that happens, a Chevy Malibu will suffice. ;)

New Orleans? Very interesting. First, it struck a house, but
it also tore a path of destruction through the house, destroying
a desk. That makes it worth collecting. But even more interesting
is the overlooked fact that New Orleans is the only visitor to
New Orleans to visit the area and not come away drunk, drugged,
tattooed or sans virginity. ;)

Weston? Well, even if Thomas Jefferson had uttered the famous
phrase he was misquoted for, the damn Yankee professors didn't lie.
Anything that make a founding father look dense is worth collecting.

I love Carancas - because it's a tease. I would love to have a
fully-crusted, whole individual. But who wouldn't? It's like
Tatahouine - you aren't getting any crust and you aren't getting
a whole individual, no matter how much money you offer. You can't
buy what doesn't exist, so Carancas and Tatahouine are the two
teases of the meteorite world. But we love to be teased, so these
two falls will always be favorites of mine. Did anyone ever
find out what the so-called noxious fumes were that supposedly
emanated from the Carancas crater?

Murchison? Smelled like rotten eggs, contains a bumper crop of
amino acids, and is an interesting carbonaceous type. It also fell
on my wife's 8th birthday. So, it's a must have. We are fortunate
that Murch happened before the Australians lost all good sense and
got retarded about their meteorite laws.

Allende! Who doesn't love Allende? If you don't love Allende,
then you are a communist, a criminal, and you should be run out of
town on a rail. Allende is Mexico's Murchison. And unlike
Murchison, you don't have to mortgage your house to own a decent
piece of Allende.

Park Forest is also a favorite. It's not just a hammer, it's a
multiple impactor. It's arguably one of the most prolific hammers.
Park Forest beaned, struck, dented, and walloped a wide variety
of targets.

Well, that's some of my favorite hammers and falls. What are your's?

Best regards and clear skies!

MikeG

PS - Everyone say hello to Mr. Michael Blood, who I know it reading
this post! By putting "hammers" in the title, I have ensured
Mr. Blood's attention and response. ;) LOL :)

.........................................................
Michael Gilmer (Louisiana, USA)
Member of the Meteoritical Society.
Member of the Bayou Region Stargazers Network.
Websites - http://www.galactic-stone.com and http://www.glassthrower.com
..........................................................




      
Received on Mon 09 Mar 2009 11:56:43 AM PDT