[meteorite-list] It is a sad day?

From: wahlperry at aol.com <wahlperry_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Mon, 08 Mar 2010 21:14:40 -0500
Message-ID: <8CC8D4568A8E9CA-3350-5846_at_webmail-m005.sysops.aol.com>

Hi All,

Check this out.

Sonny


http://www.nbmg.unr.edu/infof.htm


METEORITE COLLECTION AND IDENTIFICATION
COLLECTION
Only four authenticated meteorites have been found in Nevada to date,
and all four are on display there. It is likely many more have either
been overlooked or collected and not reported. A good book on
meteorites, written by a former Director of the Fleischmann
Planetarium, O. Richard Norton, is Rocks From Space, and it can be
purchased at the Planetarium. The book contains much information on
types of meteorites and potential areas to look. For more information
concerning meteorites, one should contact the Fleischmann Planetarium.
When collecting meteorites, it is necessary to notify the land owner of
any private property you may wish to go on. The State of Nevada has no
laws per se governing the collection of meteorites. However, meteorites
on public land fall under the same rules governing fossil and rock and
mineral collecting; they may be collected for personal use in
reasonable quantities, but may not be bartered or sold. Also all
meteorites have some scientific value, and some rare types may come
under laws dealing with specimens with a very high scientific value.
For further information, please contact the appropriate Federal agency
for their rules when collecting on public land such as the U.S. Bureau
of Land Management or the U.S. Forest Service. The courts have
determined that meteorites are not locatable under the 1872 Mining Law.
Collecting meteorites is generally prohibited in National Parks, and
trespassing and collecting is illegal on Indian Reservations without
permission from the tribal authorities. Trespassing and collecting is
both illegal and dangerous on lands controlled by the Military.
IDENTIFICATION
People commonly bring in rocks for identification as possible
meteorites. This is highly encouraged, though of course, the vast
majority of such rocks are not meteorites. The most common meteorites
found are the iron-nickel metallic type, because they just look
different than the surrounding rocks. The most common type of meteorite
to fall is the stony type. However, stony meteorites generally look
similar to the surrounding rocks and are generally overlooked.
Iron-nickel meteorites generally contain between 7 and 14% nickel, and
the NBMG Analytical Lab can do these analyses. A nickel analysis
requires a 100-500 mg (less than 0.02 oz or about the size of a pencil
eraser) sample. If the rock truly appears to be a meteorite, then the
Director of the Fleischmann Planetarium) on the University of Nevada,
Reno campus would be interested in seeing it, and with the collector's
permission, the meteorite would be sent to an appropriate lab for
further study and authentication. The collector, of course, would get
the meteorite back minus a small sample for archiving.
Received on Mon 08 Mar 2010 09:14:40 PM PST