[meteorite-list] A case not only for Bob

From: Martin Altmann <altmann_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Mon, 18 Jan 2010 18:25:15 +0100
Message-ID: <002f01ca9863$3e7b4250$07b22959_at_name86d88d87e2>

Hello list,

just recovered by a member of the German meteorite forum:

http://kuerzer.de/diletto


Don't we get finally sick and tired with that Australian idiocy, do we?

Aren't there any persons, researchers, meteorite people with reason to be
found on that continent, who feel the same pain how meteoritics is getting
fully destroyed there?

In the German meteorite forum we painted a graph for the find rates in
Australia, USA ect.

In Australia from 1900 until ca 1960 the find rates were relatively constant
and higher than in the 19th century. Then a promising ascent followed until
the end of the 1980ies (while in USA the find rate dropped a little bit),
and then a real boost happened, wherefore not only Bevan's expedition in
1991, Euromet 1992 and 1994 were responsible.

1995 then - and it is really concussive - we observe the COMPLETE breakdown
of the Australian find rates, not only to the level of the 1960ies, not down
to the level of the 1900-1950, but down to the level of the 1800ier years!
And that lasts until today.

WHILE PARALLELY the find rates in the U.S. - which have less suitable
hunting grounds but which aren't punished by such paranoid meteorite laws
like Australia - exploded to a level like Australia had in his very best few
years, shortly before the Australian meteorite laws came finally into force.

I can't help myself - why nobody in Australia of the meteorite world is
taking action to abolish these laws, which led to that disaster?

It must be in the very best interest of every Australian meteoricist,
that Australia has to turn back from ZERO to find rates, like they are
common in each desert country.

Is there any initiative taken by you, the Australian scientists, to modify
the unhandy laws?

I mean, if there are almost no meteorites found there, less than 1 per year,
neither official expeditions are undertaken, wouldn't there be a danger,
that some meteorite departments could be simply closed down?

Martin
Received on Mon 18 Jan 2010 12:25:15 PM PST