[meteorite-list] Search for first U.S. lunar meteorite

From: Galactic Stone & Ironworks <meteoritemike_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Mon, 23 Aug 2010 18:42:12 -0400
Message-ID: <AANLkTin8uZ8bSYnudDDxsAx+B7_S9TnPc2VdHF8row3c_at_mail.gmail.com>

Hi Rob, Adam, Eric, Martin and List,

Don't forget the other possibility for the first US lunaite - it could
be sitting in a long-lost drawer of a geologist or perhaps a museum
store room. It's mislabelled and forgotten, like Lafayette was for a
time. And then unsuspecting intern dusting off old rocks will notice
something strange and have a closer look. As unspectacular as that
would seem to a seasoned field hunter, it's always a possibility.
With all of the attention meteorites is getting lately (good and bad),
people are taking second looks through their rock piles. I joke
around about the photos of toliet plungers and lava rocks that I get
on a daily basis (got one yesterday), but one of these days somebody
might re-find the first US lunaite.

Of course, the best possibility is that I find it - for the better of
mankind....... LOL ;)

Whoever finds it is going to be a legend on the meteorite scene, and
if it is somebody who was previously unknown, that person is going to
be an overnight celebrity.

Heck, it might not even be a human who finds it. We already have at
least two accomplished meteorite hunting dogs, a monkey, and a Mexican
whooping llama.

Best regards and happy huntings,

MikeG


On 8/23/10, Matson, Robert D. <ROBERT.D.MATSON at saic.com> wrote:
> I think *finding* the first U.S. lunar meteorite would be a far
> greater prize than anything the Meteorite List could collectively
> offer by way of incentive! ;-) --R
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: meteorite-list-bounces at meteoritecentral.com
> [mailto:meteorite-list-bounces at meteoritecentral.com] On Behalf Of
> Meteorites USA
> Sent: Monday, August 23, 2010 3:26 PM
> To: meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
> Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] Search for first U.S. lunar meteorite
>
> Hi Martin, The reward is a good idea. Jaime and I were talking about
> something like a prize earlier today.
>
> Perhaps something similar to the Google Lunar X Prize which will pay $10
> Million to the first team to put a robot/rover on the Moon. Money is put
> up by various sponsors, companies and donors for the prize. The first
> team to accomplish the stated mission gets the is $10 Million prize.
>
> Maybe this same model (on a smaller scale) could be applied to the first
> USA Lunar meteorite discovery prize. Perhaps with dealers, enthusiasts
> and others fronting the cash for the prize which could be split 50/50
> between the Finder as cash prize and a University of choice as a grant
> for equipment and/or for curriculum related to meteorite study.
>
> "The USA Lunar Meteorite Prize" ;)
>
> Maybe it would work if done right. There are over 1000 members on the
> Meteorite list. If each person donated say a small $5 to the prize, then
> we could offer $5000. If dealers and collectors got involved as sponsors
> then they'd get the advertising exposure the prize would create, and
> they may be able to donate as much as $100 or more each. There's more
> than 100 dealers in the world. That's another $10,000 added to the
> prize. The prize could be held in escrow/trust until someone finds a
> verified USA Lunar meteorite (which could very well take years), then
> it's announced through normal channels (Met Bull, Met Soc etc.)
>
> $15,000 is a good motivator to find the first USA Lunar Meteorite. The
> scientific achievement alone is worth it! And I'm sure other donors
> might even donate more than $100 if they know at least 50% of the prize
> would be donated to a University of choice. Which could be voted on by
> meteorite community members, IMCA, Met Soc, etc.
>
> What do you think?
>
> Regards,
> Eric
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-- 
------------------------------------------------------------
Mike Gilmer - Galactic Stone & Ironworks Meteorites
http://www.galactic-stone.com
http://www.facebook.com/galacticstone
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Received on Mon 23 Aug 2010 06:42:12 PM PDT