[meteorite-list] Pros at Work II

From: Martin Altmann <altmann_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Fri, 12 Nov 2010 16:03:13 +0100
Message-ID: <008e01cb827a$bb17a0e0$3146e2a0$_at_de>

Hi Mike,

I don't know, and actually it's not our cup of tea.
Science costs. And cheaper than Antarctica it is most probably anyway.
I'm only a layman, but at least I'm sponsoring the Australian network with
the taxes on our meteorite sales.
(Although I'm not fully convinced yet that Australia is a part of EU)

The equipment and the vehicles of the searching team are very impressing.
Makes me only a little aches and pains, if I remember that the time-honored
European fireball network has severe difficulties to scrape together the
6000$, (the stations themselves are maintained by voluntary amateurs), which
are the yearly costs to run it, since the German Space Agency has quit the
financing.

What I don't fully understand yet,
is, that they caught 7 meteorite droppers, that they say, that they have an
accuracy in calculating the strewnfield of about a square mile and that they
cover a typically perfect search area, where meteorites are much more easier
to be found, than on the terrain the other camera networks cover,

but that they didn't went out to search for all these 7 falls (but only 2
times? If I read the page correctly?)
and always only with maximum 8 people.

The European fireball network uses a different method.
I mean Mike, you know it by your own, Mifflin, Buzzard Coulee, Whetstone,
Ash Creek, Park Forest - how many people and what for a manpower you need,
to recover really fair amounts of a new fall (or a new fall at all).

In Europe, to generate the manpower and manhours necessary, and simply
because there are no funds,
the network involves amateurs and private hunters in searching for possible
new falls.
Remember the greatest success, Neuschwanstein - there everyone, who wanted
to search, was instructed with the map of the calculated strewnfield, and
the 3 stones were only found, because dozens of people searched based on the
data for 3 years. Also the main mass wouldn't have been recovered, if not an
amateur could have made new calculations based on the data of the network.

Also professional private hunters are allowed to have access to the data,
and used them for Maribo e.g.
LaPice was also solely a recovery of private hunters.

And if you have in mind, Mike, Moss, Vilalbeto and so on - how small the
tkws would be, if not private professionals and amateurs would have spent
thousands of hours in the field!

(Of course, that is and was all only possible, because we in Europe don't
make such a drama about the legal restrictions like the Aussies do -
meteorites are perhaps somewhat more important to us here than there).

Don't know, whether I should, but perhaps... to give some numbers. A friend
of mine is an excellent desert hunter. His average find rate over the years,
when he was going alone, was 60kgs of new meteorites PER trip (of course
with all find data) - and the complete costs per trip, hence travel,
equipment etc. are always around 4,000$.
  
So you see,
now only theoretically and in noooo way emotionally, and keeping in mind,
that the privateers have naturally a different perspective, a more
results-oriented one, (more disclaimers necessary?) but...

if one daffs possible ideological obstacles aside and if one thinks more
practically, find-oriented, and applies the efficient method of involving
trained expert hunters and amateurs,

then the Australian desert fireball network has a HUUUUUUUUUGE potential!!

But, their beer, as we say here.
And don't forget, they seem to be still in the phase of building up that
network.
Let's see what the following years will bring.
Rome wasn't built in one day.

(Off now, have to generate more tax money,
that they can go more often out to hunt their droppers :-)
Martin



-----Urspr?ngliche Nachricht-----
Von: Galactic Stone & Ironworks [mailto:meteoritemike at gmail.com]
Gesendet: Freitag, 12. November 2010 14:11
An: Martin Altmann
Cc: meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
Betreff: Re: [meteorite-list] Pros at Work II

Well, at least nobody can spoil their little party.

It reminds me of a rich kid who lives down the block, whose parents
threw him an big extravagant birthday bash - but none of the poor kids
in the neighborhood were invited. So we got hang around outside in
the street and hear the fun without participating in it. We could
watch the guests arrive, watch the clowns arrive, watch the petting
zoo arrive, but we couldn't participate.

And I remember thinking to myself - F that kid and his family. LOL

Best regards,

MikeG
Received on Fri 12 Nov 2010 10:03:13 AM PST