[meteorite-list] Our next major source of meteorites?

From: Alexander Seidel <gsac_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Tue, 11 May 2010 00:52:58 +0200
Message-ID: <20100510225258.218780_at_gmx.net>

Didn?t someone quote "B.. rulez!" (well, I remember something like that:-)) one of those recent months and years, regarding the actual situation in Down Under? Well, may be by virtue of a well-prepared petition to the MetSoc or may be by some other thoughtful initiatives based on reasonable ideas, things might have a certain chance to change and finally turn the global vector for this issue spinning into an upwards position - even for this tough local case, hopefully...

Alex
Berlin/Germany



-------- Original-Nachricht --------
> Datum: Tue, 11 May 2010 00:04:41 +0200
> Von: "Martin Altmann" <altmann at meteorite-martin.de>
> An: meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
> Betreff: Re: [meteorite-list] Our next major source of meteorites?

> Australia.
>
> Melanie, Australia was Eden, Mecca, El Dorado, Tara, Oh Ashley!, for
> meteorites. So it has the potential. Unfortunately it felt due a wrong
> policy into a dark age for the last 2 decades, but I'm confident, that I
> still will live to see the renaissance of Australian meteorites.
>
> You know Melanie, I read some weeks ago the annual report of the Western
> Australia Museum of the period 2007/2008 - there it's said, that it is
> planned to enlarge the meteorite collection,
> Alas - in the same report is told, that in that period at the WA museum
> they
> worked on and finally published only ONE single new Australian meteorite.
>
> And that isn't acceptable, that's a declaration of bankruptcy.
>
> Researchers and scientists have always to match with the work of
> researchers
> in other countries, with colleagues of the scientific community to
> evaluate
> the quality of their work.
> And on the other hand researchers have to compete among each other for the
> financial means for their research. If such a branch of science yields
> almost no results, then sooner or later it will be abandoned, because it
> isn't justified to spent public means for these purposes.
> In Australia meteoritics maybe has survived that immense decline and
> bleeding only so long, because of its rich tradition in meteoritics. Was
> once together with USA meteorite nation #1.
> Else, like it happened in other countries, after such a long unsuccessful
> period meteoritics would have been stopped there more or less. But that
> legacy can be also a burden, because it could force the Australian
> meteoriticists to explain, why all the years before the "Dark Age" dozens
> of
> new finds were made and now less than 1 find per year and why in so many
> other countries with deserts, including USA, the find rates of new
> meteorites exploded during the very same period.
>
>
> Therefore I think the meteoriticists feel a certain pressure and things
> will
> turn back to reason one day. In fact, there are already some Australian
> scientists worried about, google around and you will find a proposal from
> a
> gentleman from the Bathurst Observatory to ease the legal restrictions
> regarding meteorites, so that finally there will be found some again.
>
> The way to find back to old glory and to restore meteorite science in
> Australia is very easy, as all pre-conditions are not only existent, but
> excellent!
> I don't know the exact mechanisms regarding legislation there, whether you
> need a petition ect. to amend existing laws (and that isn't my cup of
> tea),
> but look Melanie, Australia has some very famous meteoriticists, Dr.Bevan
> for instance - and I could imagine, that he wouldn't feel comfort to leave
> Australian meteoritics behind in such a desolate estate and that he will
> feel constraint to the once so famous meteorite tradition of Australia,
> that he will put all the weight of his capacity and his name into the
> scale,
> to improve the situation in Australia, wouldn't he?
>
> The methods are clear, and the Aussies made their experiences already,
> regarding the question, how new finds will be generated.
> Just allow finding and a fair incentive for the owner, and you'll have
> your
> meteorites.
>
> Hunting by public financed expeditions could be somewhat too expensive,
> and
> such hunts are always somewhat limited.
> I read also a paper of one of the Euromet-hunts in Australia some weeks
> ago.
> (Had no internet connetion for some days, would have to search it again,
> don't know at the moment, whether it was 1993, was that one with Bevan,
> Koeberl et al.)
> There they were going in the known strewnfields, for training, found
> 7.5kgs
> of Mundrabillas, 5 pounds of Millbillillies, a few Mulga-chondrites - and
> then they found additionally 3kg new OCs or so.
> Euromet, Melanie, was a consortium of European universities with the
> objective to recover new meteorites.
> Well, only the annual costs for personnel were around 20 millions of
> today's
> USD. - well, you know, a Mundrabilla of the private sector costs today
> 0.5$-3.5$/g (rough specimen - perfectly brilliant etch) and a
> Millbillillie
> 5-15$/g (depending on size and quality) - btw. meteorites where export
> clearances are available. Nja well and unclassified averagely weathered
> chondrites, like they found else, you know them, as it's your slogan below
> your posts, if they are UNWAs they cost 0.03-0.05$/g + postage.
> Hummmm, I know it's not fair, because in fact Euromet made also science
> and
> research, but with that exemplary expedition, we are at 1000-2000$/g for
> their Australian finds, costs for the public, if we blank all other
> targets
> than the main target of Euromet. Again: science costs, what it costs -
> that
> was now solely to give a vague impression for the discrepancy of the
> acquisition costs for the public between privately generated finds and
> publically funded finds.
>
> So best is to allow again the professional hunters and the amateur hunters
> to find and to deliver meteorites.
>
> Of course Australia never will be able to have find rates like Sahara,
> But nevertheless I think Australia easily could rival Oman. And that's a
> lot. Certainly better than like now - 7 finds in 10 years on a continent
> with a lot of deserts.
>
> So I say, they had their period of learning, unfortunately they chose to
> learn it the hard way, now it's time to overcome and to change...
>
> ...and it is highest time for Australian lunaite #2,3,4 and the first
> three
> Australian Martians!
>
> And if I will still live to see that happen, not only me as old man, but
> many other old men and women will be very happy.
>
> Best!
> Martin
>
>
>
>
> -----Urspr?ngliche Nachricht-----
> Von: meteorite-list-bounces at meteoritecentral.com
> [mailto:meteorite-list-bounces at meteoritecentral.com] Im Auftrag von
> Melanie
> Matthews
> Gesendet: Montag, 10. Mai 2010 09:03
> An: Meteorite List
> Betreff: [meteorite-list] Our next major source of meteorites?
>
> Were abouts in the world could it be? The Atacama desert in Chile (where
> in
> some areas it never rains and hasn't rained for thousands of years)?
>
> I'm talking about when it gets to the point that so few can be found
> anymore
> the Sahara.
>
> -----------
> Melanie
> IMCA: 2975
> eBay: metmel2775
> Known on SkyRock Cafe as SpaceCollector09
>
> Unclassified meteorites are like a box of chocolates... you never know
> what
> you're gonna get!
>
>
>
>
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Received on Mon 10 May 2010 06:52:58 PM PDT