[meteorite-list] Iran "Meteorite" Update

[Vishnu Reddy]

Hello Guys,

Just some fresh information of the suspected fall in Northern Iran. After 4 hours of 
phone calls
and broken persian here is what I have found. 

I spoke to Babak A.Tafreshi, the Editor of Nojum (a persian astronomy magazine) in 
Tehran at 2 am
Central time. He said 2 of his reporters are on the site which is an urban town with 
high
population. A large house has been "completely destroyed". When asked how large was 
this house he
said 10 meters. But he said NO evidence of a crater or any fragments of meteorites 
were found as
of now and they are still on the lookout. He also ruled out any missile or bomb going 
off. I will
be speaking to him again in 3 hours to get more information and if possible an image 
of the site.
Will keep you posted.

clear skies
Vishnu 

=
Vishnu Vardhan Reddy
Department of Space Studies
University of North Dakota, Grand Forks
ND 58203, USA.
Phone-701-777-9641
www.geocities.com/moonyguy
www.space.edu

Spaceguard India
www.spaceguardindia.com

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[meteorite-list] Good Luck Spirit

[MARK BOSTICK]

Hello List,   After 303 million miles the Mars rover Spirit will land on Mars today.  Good luck Spirit and NASA.     Mark Bostick www.meteoritearticles.com    

Re: [meteorite-list] update on dos cabezes

[goldmaster]

Hi Steve , Captain Dave (my bunney turd nibblin partner) and list

In 1998 I was taking the claims director to a gold nugget patch with the
hopes of the local Desert Gold Diggers bieng able to claim the area for the
club members . I found the first piece on the hike to the patch . It was 477
grams mostly crusted with several broken ends . The next day I droped it of
at the U of A with Dr Kring . I then organized a hunt for that weekend .
George V (the claims director) Jim K , Twink, Bob B., Ron M. and myself gave
it a good hunt . Jim found 3 more pieces , Bob found one and I found 2 . We
tried to fit those pieces together but all that would fit were the 2 largest
pieces . All the pieces found were in one small area about 100 foot circle .
I believe Twink ended up finding a small piece later on . Jim and I recently
found a few more pieces thanks to our drought . I think there is less than
900 grams total known weight. If the gold nuggets weren't so thick and
plentiful in the area there probably would be more found :o). The location
is on a small claimed parcel surrounded on 3 sides by private land . The
surounding land owner will not tolerate tresspassers and will not give
permmision or access to hunt for more pieces !! The claiment has given a few
of us permission to hunt his claim .
>From the first piece (the main mass) a healthy thick slice was given to the
U of A at the time of classification . A 40 gram slice was delivered to
Carleton Moore at ASU by my other bunny turd nibblin partner (Johnny
Quesiddilla Gwilliam) and I . Roughly 1/3 of that piece is on display at the
Flandrau Planetarium mineral museum on campus at the U of A . Just what else
would you like to know Steve ?? Pictures of my original pieces can be seen
on my web page at www.gci-net.com/~goldmaster
I think the 77 gram piece Twink thought was a piece turned out to be a
leaverite . But she did get a smaller piece !!
Happy Huntin
John Blennert
- Original Message -
From: "Steve Arnold, Chicago!!!" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Friday, January 02, 2004 6:43 PM
Subject: [meteorite-list] update on dos cabezes


> Hello list.I am wondering if anyone can give me an update on dos
> cabezas?Back in june, twink monrad called me and said that they had found
> another 77 grams of dos cabezas.But after that there was no more follow
> up.I am wondering if anyone ever found out any more.Can someone please let
> me know?Just curious for my own info.
>
>   steve arnold
>
> =
> Steve R.Arnold, Chicago, IL, 60120
> I. M. C. A. MEMBER #6728
> Illinois Meteorites
> website url http://stormbringer60120.tripod.com
> http://members.ebay.com/aboutme/illinoismeteorites/
>
>
>
>
>
> __
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> Find out what made the Top Yahoo! Searches of 2003
> http://search.yahoo.com/top2003
>
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> [EMAIL PROTECTED]
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[meteorite-list] Iran "Meteorite" Update

[Michael L Blood]

Vishnu,
GREAT work! Keep us informed, PLEASE.
Much appreciation, Michael



on 1/3/04 12:08 AM, Vishnu Reddy at [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:

> Hello Guys,
> 
> Just some fresh information of the suspected fall in Northern Iran. After 4
> hours of phone calls
> and broken persian here is what I have found.
> 
> I spoke to Babak A.Tafreshi, the Editor of Nojum (a persian astronomy
> magazine) in Tehran at 2 am
> Central time. He said 2 of his reporters are on the site which is an urban
> town with high
> population. A large house has been "completely destroyed". When asked how
> large was this house he
> said 10 meters. But he said NO evidence of a crater or any fragments of
> meteorites were found as
> of now and they are still on the lookout. He also ruled out any missile or
> bomb going off. I will
> be speaking to him again in 3 hours to get more information and if possible an
> image of the site.
> Will keep you posted.
> 
> clear skies
> Vishnu 
> 
> =
> Vishnu Vardhan Reddy
> Department of Space Studies
> University of North Dakota, Grand Forks
> ND 58203, USA.
> Phone-701-777-9641
> www.geocities.com/moonyguy
> www.space.edu
> 
> Spaceguard India
> www.spaceguardindia.com
> 
> __
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> New Yahoo! Photos - easier uploading and sharing.
> http://photos.yahoo.com/
> 
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--
When Jesus said "Love your enemies" I think he probably
meant don't kill them.
   Anonymous
--
AMAZING photos of Aurora Borealis, etc.
http://faculty.rmwc.edu/tmichalik/atmosphere.htm
--
Hubble space telescope - AMAZING photos!:
http://wires.news.com.au/special/mm/030811-hubble.htm
--
http://www.costofwar.com/
--
SUPPORT OUR TROUPS:
http://www.takebackthemedia.com/onearmy.html
--
Worth Seeing:
-  Earth at night from satellite:
http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/image/0011/earthlights_dmsp_big.jpg
- Interactive Lady Liberty:
http://doody36.home.attbi.com/liberty.htm
- Earth - variety of choices:
http://www.fourmilab.ch/earthview/vplanet.html
--
Panoramic view of Meteor Crater:
http://www.virtualguidebooks.com/Arizona/GrandCanyonRoute66/MeteorCrater/Met
eorCraterRimL.html
--
Cool Calendar & Clock:
  http://www.yugop.com/ver3/stuff/03/fla.html
--
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http://www.michaelbloodmeteorites.com/




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[meteorite-list] update on dos cabezes

[Michael L Blood]

Great story, John,
Who gave it the cool name and for what reason?
Best wishes,  Michael

on 1/3/04 9:24 AM, goldmaster at [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:

> Hi Steve , Captain Dave (my bunney turd nibblin partner) and list
> 
> In 1998 I was taking the claims director to a gold nugget patch with the
> hopes of the local Desert Gold Diggers bieng able to claim the area for the
> club members . I found the first piece on the hike to the patch . It was 477
> grams mostly crusted with several broken ends . The next day I droped it of
> at the U of A with Dr Kring . I then organized a hunt for that weekend .
> George V (the claims director) Jim K , Twink, Bob B., Ron M. and myself gave
> it a good hunt . Jim found 3 more pieces , Bob found one and I found 2 . We
> tried to fit those pieces together but all that would fit were the 2 largest
> pieces . All the pieces found were in one small area about 100 foot circle .
> I believe Twink ended up finding a small piece later on . Jim and I recently
> found a few more pieces thanks to our drought . I think there is less than
> 900 grams total known weight. If the gold nuggets weren't so thick and
> plentiful in the area there probably would be more found :o). The location
> is on a small claimed parcel surrounded on 3 sides by private land . The
> surounding land owner will not tolerate tresspassers and will not give
> permmision or access to hunt for more pieces !! The claiment has given a few
> of us permission to hunt his claim .
> From the first piece (the main mass) a healthy thick slice was given to the
> U of A at the time of classification . A 40 gram slice was delivered to
> Carleton Moore at ASU by my other bunny turd nibblin partner (Johnny
> Quesiddilla Gwilliam) and I . Roughly 1/3 of that piece is on display at the
> Flandrau Planetarium mineral museum on campus at the U of A . Just what else
> would you like to know Steve ?? Pictures of my original pieces can be seen
> on my web page at www.gci-net.com/~goldmaster
> I think the 77 gram piece Twink thought was a piece turned out to be a
> leaverite . But she did get a smaller piece !!
> Happy Huntin
> John Blennert
> - Original Message -
> From: "Steve Arnold, Chicago!!!" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> Sent: Friday, January 02, 2004 6:43 PM
> Subject: [meteorite-list] update on dos cabezes
> 
> 
>> Hello list.I am wondering if anyone can give me an update on dos
>> cabezas?Back in june, twink monrad called me and said that they had found
>> another 77 grams of dos cabezas.But after that there was no more follow
>> up.I am wondering if anyone ever found out any more.Can someone please let
>> me know?Just curious for my own info.
>> 
>> steve arnold
>> 
>> =
>> Steve R.Arnold, Chicago, IL, 60120
>> I. M. C. A. MEMBER #6728
>> Illinois Meteorites
>> website url http://stormbringer60120.tripod.com
>> http://members.ebay.com/aboutme/illinoismeteorites/
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> __
>> Do you Yahoo!?
>> Find out what made the Top Yahoo! Searches of 2003
>> http://search.yahoo.com/top2003
>> 
>> __
>> Meteorite-list mailing list
>> [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> http://www.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
> 
> 
> __
> Meteorite-list mailing list
> [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> http://www.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list

--
When Jesus said "Love your enemies" I think he probably
meant don't kill them.
   Anonymous
--
AMAZING photos of Aurora Borealis, etc.
http://faculty.rmwc.edu/tmichalik/atmosphere.htm
--
Hubble space telescope - AMAZING photos!:
http://wires.news.com.au/special/mm/030811-hubble.htm
--
http://www.costofwar.com/
--
SUPPORT OUR TROUPS:
http://www.takebackthemedia.com/onearmy.html
--
Worth Seeing:
-  Earth at night from satellite:
http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/image/0011/earthlights_dmsp_big.jpg
- Interactive Lady Liberty:
http://doody36.home.attbi.com/liberty.htm
- Earth - variety of choices:
http://www.fourmilab.ch/earthview/vplanet.html
--
Panoramic view of Meteor Crater:
http://www.virtualguidebooks.com/Arizona/GrandCanyonRoute66/MeteorCrater/Met
eorCraterRimL.html
--
Cool Calendar & Clock:
  http://www.yugop.com/ver3/stuff/03/fla.html
--
Michael Blood Meteorites & Didgeridoos for sale at:
http://www.michaelbloodmeteorites.com/




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[meteorite-list] Close Encounter of a Cometary Kind

[Ron Baalke]

Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council
Swindon, U.K.

Contacts:
Gill Ormrod
PPARC Press Office
Tel: +44 (0)1793-442012
Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]

Louis de la Foret
Open University Media Relations Office
Tel: 01908 653256
Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]

Professor Tony McDonnell
Open University STARDUST team/NASA Co-Investigator (at JPL, California)
Tel: +44 (0) 1227 761352
Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]

Dr Simon Green
Open University STARDUST team (at JPL from 27th Dec)
Tel: +44 (0) 1908 659601
Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]

Dr Neil McBride
Open University STARDUST team (at JPL from 27th Dec)
Tel: +44 (0) 1908 659600
Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]

Professor John Zarnecki
Open University (in UK)
Tel: +44 (0) 01227 831067
Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]

3 January 2004

Close Encounter of a Cometary Kind -- STARDUST flies through Comet Wild 2

At 19:44 hours GMT on 2nd January NASA's space probe, STARDUST, successfully 
flew through Comet Wild 2, collecting interstellar particles and dust on its 
way. One of the instruments on board, the Dust Flux Monitor Instrument (DFMI), 
has been built by a team which include space scientists from the Open University.

Since its launch in February 1999, STARDUST has covered 3.2 billion km (2.3 
billion miles). It is the first mission designed to bring samples back from a 
known comet. The study of comets provides a window into the past as they are the 
best preserved raw materials in the Solar System. The cometary and interstellar 
dust samples collected will help provide answers to fundamental questions about 
the origins of the solar system.

Professor Tony McDonnell and Dr Simon Green from the Open University's Planetary 
and Space Science Research Institute (PSSRI) are currently at the mission 
command centre, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, where they are 
beginning to receive data from their instrument.

Dr Simon Green said: "Early indications show that the encounter with Comet Wild 
2 has been successful. The sensors on the DFMI have detected a significant 
number of impacts. Some of these, as expected, have penetrated the spacecraft 
dust shield -- hopefully this should result in a good number of samples being 
returned to Earth."

Professor Tony McDonnell added, "The whole process seems to have gone to plan 
and we look forward to receiving more data over the next day or so. The 
telemetry received so far includes an image from the onboard camera, which shows 
a roughly spherical comet nucleus that was pockmarked with large "sinkholes". 
Four or five jets of material could be seen bursting from the object."

At the time of the encounter the 3.3 mile wide comet (5.4 km) sailed past the 5 
metre long spacecraft at a distance of 186 miles (240 km) and at a relative 
speed of 21,960 km per hour (13,650 miles/hour). The tennis racket shaped 
collector was extended on 24 December in preparation for the encounter. Now that 
this has taken place a clam like shell will have encased the aerogel collector 
keeping safe the particles until they return to Earth in January 2006.

"Stardust could provide a new window into the distant past," said Dr Green. 
"Comets are made of ice and are very cold and have been very cold since they 
were formed. That protects the material of which they were made from any process 
of heating, so they haven't been changed since they were formed, right at the 
beginning of the formation of the Solar System. So we can have almost a little 
time capsule of what things were like 4.5 billion years ago."

UK scientists, including a team from the Open University, are also involved with 
the European Space Agency's Rosetta Mission which will follow and land on Comet 
Churyumov-Gerasimenko. This mission is due to be launched on 26th February 2004.

The Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council (PPARC) is the UK's 
strategic science investment agency. It funds research, education and public 
understanding in four broad areas of science -- particle physics, astronomy, 
cosmology and space science.

PPARC is government funded and provides research grants and studentships to 
scientists in British universities, gives researchers access to world-class 
facilities and funds the UK membership of international bodies such as the 
European Organisation for Nuclear Research, CERN, the European Space Agency and 
the European Southern Observatory. It also contributes money for the UK 
telescopes overseas on La Palma, Hawaii, Australia and in Chile, the UK 
Astronomy Technology Centre at the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh and the 
MERLIN/VLBI National Facility.

Notes for editor:

Background information

The DFMI, part funded by the Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council 
(PPARC) records the distribution and sizes of particles on its journey through 
the centre, or coma, of the comet. This will help tell us more about comets and 
the evolution of our own solar system and, critical for STARDUST, its survival 
in the close fly-by of the comet.

The distance bet

[meteorite-list] STONE: an articifial meteorite experiment

[Tom aka James Knudson]

Have you all read about this? I could not get the ling to work so I mailed
the article
Thanks, Tom
Peregrineflier <><

 Overview

The Foton-12 mission hosted the ESA experiment STONE, the first artificial
meteorite experiment aiming at studying the modifications suffered by
meteorites during atmospheric entry.

STONE is an investigation about the physical and chemical modifications
occurring in meteorites during atmospheric infall, especially in sedimantary
rocks coming from Mars. Its scientific scope interlinks mineralogy,
planetary science, exobiology and chemistry.

Generally, meteorites differ from ordinary terrestrial rocks by the coloured
fusion crust acquired during the atmospheric entry. However, carbonate-rich
Martian sedimentary rocks may never develop a fusion crust. Indeed, thermal
decrepitation of carbonates during atmospheric infall is likely to produce a
surface texture that is not recognisable as a fusion crust - in which case
such meteorites would be overlooked by the collectors. In addition, the
atmospheric entry may also alter the chemical and isotopic composition of
the samples.

Detailed description of the experiment and its results

by Dr. André Brack, Centre de Biophysique Moleculaire, CNRS, Rue Charles
Sandron, F-45071 Orleans, France, and Prof. Gero Kurat, Naturhistorisches
Museum, Postfach 417, A-1014 Wien, Austria

The study of meteorites
Artificial meteorites offer a unique possibility to identify changes
accompanying atmospheric infall on well-defined material by reference to
original, unexposed samples. They can also be loaded with bacteria and can
therefore be used to evaluate the chances of extraterrestrial microbial
samples to reach safely the surface of the Earth. Real atmospheric entry as
compared to simulation on ground represents the easiest way to study the
physical, chemical and morphological transformations brought to a high speed
object impacting a gradient of nitrogen/oxygen gas mixtures.

Most of the 25 000 meteorites collected so far originate from bodies in the
asteroid belt. There are 18 samples definitely from the Moon. Most lunar
meteorites are regolith samples, as would be expected if rocks are propelled
from planetary surfaces by impact. There are further 14 meteorites, known as
SNC meteorites, lumped together on the basis of a number of common
characteristics which make the samples quite distinct from asteroidal
debris. They are believed to originate from Mars.

None of these SNC meteorites is a surface sample. Because Mars had a warm
and wet past climate, its surface must be covered by both impact generated
regolith and sedimentary rocks deposited by running and/or still water. The
sedimentary rocks should comprise detrital deposits as well as chemical
sediments like evaporites. In addition, groundwater can be expected to
compact loose sediments and regolith by filling the pore space with
evaporitic minerals. Such consolidated sedimentary hard rocks should be
among the Martian meteorites but they are not. It is possible that they did
survive escape acceleration from the Martian surface but did not survive
terrestrial atmospheric entry because of decrepitation of the cementing
mineral which is very likely to be a sulphate.

Description of the STONE experiment
The STONE experiment aims at studying the physical and chemical
modifications in sedimentary rocks during atmospheric infall.

Three terrestrial pieces of rock have been exposed to atmospheric entry at
the outer surface of the Foton 12 capsule:

   1. A basalt to serve as an inflight control to demonstrate that the
impact heat is sufficient to form a dark fusion crust (the entry velocity of
the Foton satellite is lower than that of a meteorite). Basalts are
representative of all planetary surfaces. They are the primitive silicate
liquids formed by partial melting of chondrites, the most primitive matter
of the solar system, i.e., the building blocks of the planets. The sample is
an alkali olivine basalt from Pauliberg, a Tertiary volcano in Burgenland,
Austria.
   2. Dolostone (dolomite), carbonate sedimentary rock, a chemical
sedimentary rock containing also remnants of carbonate fossil shells and
some silicate debris. The rock is very fine-grained, re-crystallised (<50
µm) and dense. It consists of dolomite (Ca-Mg carbonate) and minor amounts
of quartz and feldspar. The rock was collected at the base of the Lagazuoi
Mountain in the bed of Rio Lagazuoi just below Passo di Falzarego, Belluno,
Italy.
   3. An artificial rock simulating the Martian regolith or soil, composed
of 80% basalt crushed into grains of less than 5 mm in size, and 20% gypsum
to cement the grains.

Results of the STONE experiment
The three samples were embedded into the ablative heat shield of Foton-12
which was launched on 9 September and landed on 24 September 1999.

The basalt heat shield holder for unknown reasons failed and the basalt
sample has been lost, probably during the final stage of ablative high-speed
atmospheric en

[meteorite-list] Mad Cow and Meteorites.

[Francis Graham]

"We still had hamburgers for dinner that night," 
he said. "The odds of 
being hit by a meteorite are much greater than 
anyone in America dying 
of mad cow disease."

   Interestingly, there is some science behind the
speculation that something like a prion protovirus may
have been carried to the early Earth by a meteorite,
since life on Earth seems to have developed within 400
Mya after cooling. But no one can be sure yet, since
there are also models for a rapid RNA world that might
work.
   Certainly the prion that causes mad cow was not
brought by a meteorite though, since it is too
host-specific. Unless there are cows in space. Now
that would make interesting meteorites. :)

Francis Graham


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Re: [meteorite-list] Mad Cow and Vaca Muerta

[Howard Wu]

Prions are supposedly heat resistant and carry no genetic material. Then there is the question of how a prion would get into a cows brain. Only possible way I can think of is a direct impact to the skull by a micro fragment. Vaca Muerta comes to mind though any fall out in the range only witnessed by cows could be the culprit. And maybe the tale of the cow jumping over the moon is a oral record of space cows observed by aboriginals. Perhaps why cows are sacred in India is they were once visited by cows from space millenia ago
 
Taurus the Bull..(i.e.Too ashame to sign my name to this one.)
 
Francis Graham <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
"We still had hamburgers for dinner that night," he said. "The odds of being hit by a meteorite are much greater than anyone in America dying of mad cow disease."Interestingly, there is some science behind thespeculation that something like a prion protovirus mayhave been carried to the early Earth by a meteorite,since life on Earth seems to have developed within 400Mya after cooling. But no one can be sure yet, sincethere are also models for a rapid RNA world that mightwork.Certainly the prion that causes mad cow was notbrought by a meteorite though, since it is toohost-specific. Unless there are cows in space. Nowthat would make interesting meteorites. :)Francis Graham__Do you Yahoo!?Find out what made the Top Yahoo! Searches of
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Re: [meteorite-list] Mad Dog and Nakhla

[David Freeman]

Dear Howard (TaurusB.);
Suppose that the Nakhla dog could have been struck with fairies and that 
this would have originated canine rabies, or even cats with distemper? 
Yikes, maybe my senility is related to meteorites in one way and another!
Sprites pitching space rocks...
pixies with pallesites...
Ouch,
DAve F.

Howard Woo wrote:

Prions are supposedly heat resistant and carry no genetic material. 
Then there is the question of how a prion would get into a cows brain. 
Only possible way I can think of is a direct impact to the skull by a 
micro fragment. Vaca Muerta comes to mind though any fall out in the 
range only witnessed by cows could be the culprit. And maybe the tale 
of the cow jumping over the moon is a oral record of space cows 
observed by aboriginals. Perhaps why cows are sacred in India is they 
were once visited by cows from space millenia ago

 

Taurus the Bull..(i.e.Too ashame to sign my name to this one.)

 

Francis Graham <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

"We still had hamburgers for dinner that night,"
he said. "The odds of
being hit by a meteorite are much greater than
anyone in America dying
of mad cow disease."
Interestingly, there is some science behind the
speculation that something like a prion protovirus may
have been carried to the early Earth by a meteorite,
since life on Earth seems to have developed within 400
Mya after cooling. But no one can be sure yet, since
there are also models for a rapid RNA world that might
work.
Certainly the prion that causes mad cow was not
brought by a meteorite though, since it is too
host-specific. Unless there are cows in space. Now
that would make interesting meteorites. :)
Francis Graham

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Re: [meteorite-list] Mad Cow and Vaca Muerta

[John Gwilliam]

Still working on that $10.00 gallon of tequila from New Years, huh?

John

At 08:33 PM 1/3/04 +, Howard Wu wrote:
Prions are supposedly heat resistant and carry
no genetic material. Then there is the question of how a prion would get
into a cows brain. Only possible way I can think of is a direct impact to
the skull by a micro fragment. Vaca Muerta comes to mind though any fall
out in the range only witnessed by cows could be the culprit. And maybe
the tale of the cow jumping over the moon is a oral record of space cows
observed by aboriginals. Perhaps why cows are sacred in India is they
were once visited by cows from space millenia ago
 
Taurus the Bull..(i.e.Too ashame to sign my name to this one.)
 

Francis Graham <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
wrote:

"We still had hamburgers for dinner that night," 
he said. "The odds of 
being hit by a meteorite are much greater than 
anyone in America dying 
of mad cow disease."


Interestingly, there is some science behind the
speculation that something like a prion protovirus may
have been carried to the early Earth by a meteorite,
since life on Earth seems to have developed within 400
Mya after cooling. But no one can be sure yet, since
there are also models for a rapid RNA world that might
work.
Certainly the prion that causes mad cow was not
brought by a meteorite though, since it is too
host-specific. Unless there are cows in space. Now
that would make interesting meteorites. :)


Francis Graham




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Re: [meteorite-list] Mad Cow and Meteorites.

[GeoZay]

>>Unless there are cows in space.<<
Haven't you ever heard about the cow that jumped over the moon?
GeoZay

Re: [meteorite-list] Mad Cow and Vaca Muerta

[GeoZay]

>>Prions are supposedly heat resistant and carry no genetic material.<<
This brings to mind that micrometeorites don't burn up when they enter the atmosphere. I believe the reason why is because they are so small, that this allows them to dissipate the heat about as fast as it is produced. If the seeds of life on earth came from outer space, I would think they came in as single small organic molecules of some kind and not riding on the backs of comets that produce copius amounts of sustained heat upon impact.
GeoZay

[meteorite-list] NPA 12-1952 La Paz, Utah Meteor Crater Wrongs

[MARK BOSTICK]

 Paper: Independent Record  City: Helena, Montana  Date: Friday, December 10, 1952 Page: 3   Southern Utah's Craters Not Made by Meteors   Alburquerque, N.M. - (AP) - Dr. Lincoln La Paz, head of New Mexico university Institute of Meteoritics, said Thursday that four small craters in southern Utah weren't from meteorites. He called an apprasial by a colleague that they were from a meteorite fall "one of the most embarrassing scientific blunders of recent years." The craters were caysed by dynamite blasts, Dr. La Paz said. He took issue with published remarks of Dr. Richard N. Thomas of Utah university and the Harvard observatory about the craters near Antimony, Utah. Thomas wrote that members of a party he led to the craters agreed they were produced by a recent meteorite fall. His views were in the October issue of Harvard's journal of astromony, "Sky and Telescope." La Paz made public a statement by Van A. Wiley of Antimony that the craters came from detonation of dynamite left over from a ditch blasting project. Wiley said he supervised the detonation of the old dynamite.Please visit, www.MeteoriteArticles.com, a free on-line archive of meteor and meteorite articles.

Re: [meteorite-list] Mad Dog and Nakhla

[Howard Wu]

Need I remind you that in-flu-enza was originally believed to "flow" from the river of stars. Today we think it comes from pigs and ducks from China on airplanes.
 
HowardDavid Freeman <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Dear Howard (TaurusB.);Suppose that the Nakhla dog could have been struck with fairies and that this would have originated canine rabies, or even cats with distemper? Yikes, maybe my senility is related to meteorites in one way and another!Sprites pitching space rocks...pixies with pallesites...Ouch,DAve F.Howard Woo wrote:> Prions are supposedly heat resistant and carry no genetic material. > Then there is the question of how a prion would get into a cows brain. > Only possible way I can think of is a direct impact to the skull by a > micro fragment. Vaca Muerta comes to mind though any fall out in the > range only witnessed by cows could be the culprit. And maybe the tale > of the cow jumping over the moon is a oral record of space cows > observed by aboriginals. Perhaps why cows are sacred in
 India is they > were once visited by cows from space millenia ago>> >> Taurus the Bull..(i.e.Too ashame to sign my name to this one.)>> >>> Francis Graham <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>wrote:>> "We still had hamburgers for dinner that night,"> he said. "The odds of> being hit by a meteorite are much greater than> anyone in America dying> of mad cow disease.">> Interestingly, there is some science behind the> speculation that something like a prion protovirus may> have been carried to the early Earth by a meteorite,> since life on Earth seems to have developed within 400> Mya after cooling. But no one can be sure yet, since> there are also models for a rapid RNA world that might> work.> Certainly the prion that causes mad cow was not> brought by a meteorite though, since it is too> host-specific.
 Unless there are cows in space. Now> that would make interesting meteorites. :)>> Francis Graham>>> __> Do you Yahoo!?> Find out what made the Top Yahoo! Searches of 2003> http://search.yahoo.com/top2003>> __> Meteorite-list mailing list> [EMAIL PROTECTED]> http://www.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list>> > Yahoo! Messenger > > - Communicate instantly..."Ping" your friends today! Download > Messenger Now > __Meteorite-list
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FW: [meteorite-list] Mad Cow and Vaca Muerta

[Jose Campos]

  
Hi Taurus the Bull,
 
    That cow that jumped over the moon, 
was afterwards it on the head and killed by a stony-iron 
meteorite.
    This same meteorite later became 
aptly known as Vaca Muerta, which, in Spanish means "Dead 
Cow"...
    Some scientists suspect that the cow 
was already mad, before it was struck by the meteorite, and that with 
the hard blow, the cow's brain were all over the place, infecting some nearby 
prions  in the process... but other scientists quickly 
said that's a lot of bull!
    Have a nice 
Sunday.
    José
 
 
-Original Message-From: 
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 
[mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]On Behalf Of Howard 
WuSent: Saturday, January 03, 2004 8:33 PMTo: Francis 
Graham; [EMAIL PROTECTED]Subject: Re: 
[meteorite-list] Mad Cow and Vaca Muerta
Prions are supposedly heat resistant and carry no genetic material. Then 
there is the question of how a prion would get into a cows brain. Only possible 
way I can think of is a direct impact to the skull by a micro fragment. Vaca 
Muerta comes to mind though any fall out in the range only witnessed by cows 
could be the culprit. And maybe the tale of the cow jumping over the moon is 
a oral record of space cows observed by aboriginals. Perhaps why cows 
are sacred in India is they were once visited by cows from space millenia 
ago
 
Taurus the Bull..(i.e.Too ashame to sign my name to this one.)
 
Francis Graham <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 
wrote:
"We 
  still had hamburgers for dinner that night," he said. "The odds of 
  being hit by a meteorite are much greater than anyone in America dying 
  of mad cow disease."Interestingly, there is some science behind 
  thespeculation that something like a prion protovirus mayhave been 
  carried to the early Earth by a meteorite,since life on Earth seems to 
  have developed within 400Mya after cooling. But no one can be sure yet, 
  sincethere are also models for a rapid RNA world that 
  mightwork.Certainly the prion that causes mad cow was notbrought 
  by a meteorite though, since it is toohost-specific. Unless there are cows 
  in space. Nowthat would make interesting meteorites. :)Francis 
  Graham__Do you Yahoo!?Find 
  out what made the Top Yahoo! Searches of 
  2003http://search.yahoo.com/top2003__Meteorite-list 
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  list[EMAIL PROTECTED]http://www.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list


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Re: [meteorite-list] Blue Moon (Was Mad Cow)

[MexicoDoug]

John,

You haven't purchased Tequila lately!  Maybe $10.00 a gram for Tequila Gold?   The Tempe BIG blue barrel cactus rum special is definitely not Tequila!  
saludos,
Doug



En un mensaje con fecha 01/03/2004 2:52:29 PM Mexico Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] escribe:


Still working on that $10.00 gallon of tequila from New Years, huh?

John

FW: [meteorite-list] Mad Cow and Vaca Muerta

[Jose Campos]

Hi 
again!
 
Sorry, I mean "hit" - not "it"...
    

    
José
 
-Original Message-From: 
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 
[mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]On Behalf Of Jose 
CamposSent: Sunday, January 04, 2004 1:00 AMTo: 
[EMAIL PROTECTED]Subject: FW: [meteorite-list] Mad 
Cow and Vaca Muerta
  
Hi Taurus the Bull,
 
    That cow that jumped over the moon, 
was afterwards it on the head and killed by a stony-iron 
meteorite.
    This same meteorite later became 
aptly known as Vaca Muerta, which, in Spanish means "Dead 
Cow"...
    Some scientists suspect that the cow 
was already mad, before it was struck by the meteorite, and that with 
the hard blow, the cow's brain were all over the place, infecting some nearby 
prions  in the process... but other scientists quickly 
said that's a lot of bull!
    Have a nice 
Sunday.
    José
 
 
-Original Message-From: 
[EMAIL PROTECTED] 
[mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]On Behalf Of Howard 
WuSent: Saturday, January 03, 2004 8:33 PMTo: Francis 
Graham; [EMAIL PROTECTED]Subject: Re: 
[meteorite-list] Mad Cow and Vaca Muerta
Prions are supposedly heat resistant and carry no genetic material. Then 
there is the question of how a prion would get into a cows brain. Only possible 
way I can think of is a direct impact to the skull by a micro fragment. Vaca 
Muerta comes to mind though any fall out in the range only witnessed by cows 
could be the culprit. And maybe the tale of the cow jumping over the moon is 
a oral record of space cows observed by aboriginals. Perhaps why cows 
are sacred in India is they were once visited by cows from space millenia 
ago
 
Taurus the Bull..(i.e.Too ashame to sign my name to this one.)
 
Francis Graham <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 
wrote:
"We 
  still had hamburgers for dinner that night," he said. "The odds of 
  being hit by a meteorite are much greater than anyone in America dying 
  of mad cow disease."Interestingly, there is some science behind 
  thespeculation that something like a prion protovirus mayhave been 
  carried to the early Earth by a meteorite,since life on Earth seems to 
  have developed within 400Mya after cooling. But no one can be sure yet, 
  sincethere are also models for a rapid RNA world that 
  mightwork.Certainly the prion that causes mad cow was notbrought 
  by a meteorite though, since it is toohost-specific. Unless there are cows 
  in space. Nowthat would make interesting meteorites. :)Francis 
  Graham__Do you Yahoo!?Find 
  out what made the Top Yahoo! Searches of 
  2003http://search.yahoo.com/top2003__Meteorite-list 
  mailing 
  list[EMAIL PROTECTED]http://www.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list


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Re: [meteorite-list] Tincture of Blue Moon (Was Mad Cow)

[Howard Wu]

I don't drink, but whenever I know anyone going south of the border I have them bring me back a liter bottle of 196 proof for medicinal purposes for under ten dollars. Tequila can also be had for cheap, but only one litter per body per day.
 
Howard[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
John,You haven't purchased Tequila lately!  Maybe $10.00 a gram for Tequila Gold?   The Tempe BIG blue barrel cactus rum special is definitely not Tequila!  saludos,DougEn un mensaje con fecha 01/03/2004 2:52:29 PM Mexico Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] escribe:
Still working on that $10.00 gallon of tequila from New Years, huh?John  
Yahoo! Messenger - Communicate instantly..."Ping" your friends 
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[meteorite-list] Scientists Find Mars Meteorite (NWA 1950)

[Ron Baalke]

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,8319948%255E1702,00.html

Scientists find Mars meteorite
>From Gerard Sevestre in Paris
The Weekend Australian
January 04, 2004

TWO French scientists said today they believed they had discovered a rare meteorite 
from
Mars which could shed light on the red planet's geological make-up and volcanic 
activity.

A team led by Carine Bidaut and Bruno Fectay found two chunks of meteorite weighing 414
and 383 grams respectively in the Atlas mountains of southern Morocco in January and
March 2001.

A group of French scientists, the Theodore Monod Consortium, has just finished 
examining
the stones and declared them to belong to the extremely rare group of SNC - 
shergottite,
nakhlite, chassignite - meteorites, which are believed to come from Mars.

The scientists said the chunks of meteorite were magmatic rocks. Magmatism is the main
process by which water moves from the core of planets to their surface.

Scientists said they hoped the discovery of the meteorites would help clarify the 
processes
that produced magmas on Mars and perhaps make it possible "to estimate the quantity of
fluids (and therefore water) released by volcanic activity on the planet". 

SNC meteorites are extremely rare - fewer than 20 confirmed examples have
been discovered - and are believed to all come from the same body of rock. They are
distinguished by their relative youth, being at most 1.3 million years old,
compared to 4.5 million for other meteorites.

They are believed to come from Mars because, among other things, they show
evidence of rare gases found in the planet's atmosphere and they are hydrated
basaltic rocks, which indicates the presence of a hydrosphere in their place of origin.

US space agency NASA said in 1996 the evidence of microfossils may be present in
meteorites from Mars.

The meteorite discovered by the French-led team in Morocco is officially called the
North-West 1950 but has been nicknamed the Jules Verne, after the French author, by the
scientists.

It is described as a peridotite - magmatic rock - consisting of olivine, pyroxenes and
plagioclase glass.

Only one other example of an SNC meteorite equivalent to NWA 1950 has been found on
earth - a chunk of rock discovered in Antarctica in 1977. Apart from NASA, no other
scientific laboratory has had the opportunity to examine such a specimen.

The Theodore Monod Consortium holds a world record in the scientific community for
studying the largest number of Martian meteorites - six as compared to NASA's four.

Bidaut and Fectay also hold a world record for the largest number of finds of 
exceptional
stones, including six Martian meteorites.

They have a stock of over 1000 meteorites waiting to be taken up by financial sponsors 
so
they can be examined in European labs. 

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[meteorite-list] On Line Tucson Auction Catalog - AD

[Michael L Blood]

The first specimens of the Tucson Auction, including one of the
world's largest full slices of Rio Limay,  are now on the web at:

http://www.michaelbloodmeteorites.com/AuctionOLCat.html

Many more to come, including, but in no way limited to,
the Gaza Stone, at a minimum far below any price before.
Best wishes, Michael


--
When Jesus said "Love your enemies" I think he probably
meant don't kill them.
   Anonymous
--
AMAZING photos of Aurora Borealis, etc.
http://faculty.rmwc.edu/tmichalik/atmosphere.htm
--
Hubble space telescope - AMAZING photos!:
http://wires.news.com.au/special/mm/030811-hubble.htm
--
http://www.costofwar.com/
--
SUPPORT OUR TROUPS:
http://www.takebackthemedia.com/onearmy.html
--
Worth Seeing:
-  Earth at night from satellite:
http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/image/0011/earthlights_dmsp_big.jpg
- Interactive Lady Liberty:
http://doody36.home.attbi.com/liberty.htm
- Earth - variety of choices:
http://www.fourmilab.ch/earthview/vplanet.html
--
Panoramic view of Meteor Crater:
http://www.virtualguidebooks.com/Arizona/GrandCanyonRoute66/MeteorCrater/Met
eorCraterRimL.html
--
Cool Calendar & Clock:
  http://www.yugop.com/ver3/stuff/03/fla.html
--
Michael Blood Meteorites & Didgeridoos for sale at:
http://www.michaelbloodmeteorites.com/




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[meteorite-list] SALE - Contest w/free Sikhote Alin meteorites on ebay auctions

[Sharkkb8]

Just a reminder about my New Year's "contest" on the Jan 4 (tomorrow) ebay auctions:  if a listee wins more of these auctions than any other single bidder, he/she gets three Sikhote Alin meteorites totaling 22.6 g.  And in addition, if that listee's winning bids total more $ than any other single bidder's win-total, I'll also throw in a nice 18.9 g S.A.   Over 40 FREE grams of S.A.!
 
This contest is for the 21 ebay meteorite-auctions ending tomorrow (Sunday Jan 4) only.  
 
(And btw, if any auction-winners want to save a couple of bucks on shipping, I'd be happy to bring any of these along to Tucson in a few weeks...!) 
 
http://cgi6.aol.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewSellersOtherItems&include=0&userid=sharkkb8
 
GregoryJ. Gregory Wilson2118 Wilshire Blvd. #918Santa Monica, CA 90403

[meteorite-list] MeteoriteTimes will be up soon

[Paul Harris]

Dear List Members,

Happy New Year!

With the holiday we are still waiting for a couple of articles to be
finished.  We'll keep you posted.
Thank you!

Paul and Jim

**
  Paul Harris   [EMAIL PROTECTED]
  Jim Tobin [EMAIL PROTECTED]
  The Meteorite Exchange, Inc.  http://www.meteorite.com
  MeteoriteTimes.com http://www.meteoritetimes.com
  PMB#455 P.O. Box 7000, Redondo Beach, CA 90277 USA
***


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[meteorite-list] Anyone else get an e-mail like this???

[Dave Schultz]

> This email was sent by an eBay member via eBay's
> email forwarding system. 
> If you reply to the email, your response will go
> directly to the member and 
> not through eBay. 
> 
> eBay Marketplace Safety Tip:
> If this email is an offer to sell you an item
> without winning the listing 
> on eBay, please report it to us at
>
http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/rfe-spam-non-ebay-sale.html.
> Please do not respond to it.  Regardless of the
> apparent feedback of the 
> sender or any claims they might make, such an offer
> is not only against our 
> rules, but it is extremely risky.  It is unsafe to
> purchase such an item through 
> a transaction that is not on our site. You will lose
> the benefit of eBay's 
> purchase protection programs, and run the risk of
> losing your money.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> To member:   indy1996
> From member: dadkitty
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I'm leaving for antarctica next sunday
> I understand it is a great place to find meteorites?
> I know nothing about them.
> I thought I would look them up on ebay and had no
> idea
> what they go for.
> Do you have any tips for bringing any them home
> (if it is even possible)
> thanks
> kathi
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 


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Re: [meteorite-list] Tincture of Blue Moon (Was Mad Cow)

[MexicoDoug]

Howard, ...you don't drinkwait a mo...that would make you an anhydrous achondrite analcoholic anomolous Howardite, with no bubblies or liquids.  You win, I'll have to agree you could dig up some cheap tequila for $10 for three quarters of a liter, especially if purchased in Bordertown Mex, duty free.  Now the tincture sounds real impressive, especially if immediately followed by a day baking in the Sonoran desert...saludos, Doug

En un mensaje con fecha 01/03/2004 7:25:31 PM Mexico Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] escribe:

I don't drink, but whenever I know anyone going south of the border I have them bring me back a liter bottle of 196 proof for medicinal purposes for under ten dollars. Tequila can also be had for cheap, but only one litter per body per day.
  
Howard

[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
 
John,

You haven't purchased Tequila lately!  Maybe $10.00 a gram for Tequila Gold?   The Tempe BIG blue barrel cactus rum special is definitely not Tequila!  
saludos,
Doug



En un mensaje con fecha 01/03/2004 2:52:29 PM Mexico Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] escribe:


Still working on that $10.00 gallon of tequila from New Years, huh?

John




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Re: [meteorite-list] Anyone else get an e-mail like this???

[David Freeman]

Well, I bet it's the government trying to spy in on the illegal trade of 
stuff from Antarctica, there are other rocks that have surfaced from 
Antarctica that are being sold on ebay as well.
Dave Freeman mjwy

Dave Schultz wrote:

This email was sent by an eBay member via eBay's
email forwarding system. 
If you reply to the email, your response will go
directly to the member and 
not through eBay. 

eBay Marketplace Safety Tip:
If this email is an offer to sell you an item
without winning the listing 
on eBay, please report it to us at

http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/rfe-spam-non-ebay-sale.html.

Please do not respond to it.  Regardless of the
apparent feedback of the 
sender or any claims they might make, such an offer
is not only against our 
rules, but it is extremely risky.  It is unsafe to
purchase such an item through 
a transaction that is not on our site. You will lose
the benefit of eBay's 
purchase protection programs, and run the risk of
losing your money.



To member:   indy1996
From member: dadkitty


I'm leaving for antarctica next sunday
I understand it is a great place to find meteorites?
I know nothing about them.
I thought I would look them up on ebay and had no
idea
what they go for.
Do you have any tips for bringing any them home
(if it is even possible)
thanks
kathi






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[meteorite-list] US mission touches down on Mars

[MexicoDoug]

>From the bbc:

US mission touches down on Mars



 

A US space probe has landed on Mars to seek signs that the planet was once capable of supporting life. The six-wheeled rover Spirit parachuted down to the planet's surface at about 0435 GMT on Sunday. 

The rover sent back a radio signal shortly after touchdown which confirmed it had survived the plunge through the Martian atmosphere. 

The six-minute descent was the final and most daunting leg of the seven-month voyage from Earth. 

Spirit is one of a pair of rovers that will seek evidence for water on Mars. 

Its twin, Opportunity, will touch down on the other side of Mars in late January. The rovers will roam the planet and examine rocks in a three-month mission to map out the history of water on Mars. 

'High anxiety' 

Nasa has installed a system on the rover to communicate information about the progress of its fiery fall through the Martian atmosphere. 

US MARS ROVERS 
 
Spirit targeted at Gusev Crater, possible ancient lake feature 
Opportunity to land at Meridiani Planum, which contains minerals often associated with water 
Spirit and Opportunity weigh about 17 times as much as the 1997 Sojourner rover 


A series of tones told controllers that the vehicle's parachute and landing airbags had deployed properly. 

A few minutes later they received a signal that the probe had survived the six-minute plunge through the Martian atmosphere. 

The landing sequence took the spacecraft from 19,000 km/h (12,000 mph) to a complete stop in six minutes, and had to be executed flawlessly. 

"Mars is an incredibly difficult place to land... some call it the death planet," Ed Weiler, Nasa's associate administrator for space science, said. 

Steve Squyres, a principal scientist on the mission, added: "One gust of wind, one sharp pointy rock and we could have a really bad night." 

Field geologist 

Spirit is heading for the Gusev Crater, just south of the Martian equator, which may once have held a lake. 

 The rovers are equipped with tools to study a diverse array of rocks and soil types 


The rover, the size of a small car, is crammed with cameras and scientific instruments designed to study the geology of the area. 

It will roll up to interesting rocks, grind out a sample and analyse the minerals. 

The mission is not looking directly for life on Mars; the aim is to understand past conditions on the planet to assess whether it could have supported life. 

Today, Mars is dry and cold. But ancient river channels and other water-carved features seen from orbit suggest the planet may have had a more hospitable past. 

"We see these intriguing hints Mars may have been a different place long ago," Dr Squyres said. 

Independent scrutiny 

Shortly after coming to rest on the planet's surface, the lander will do a systems check and relay engineering information to Earth. 

 I don't know what else we can do to ensure success. It's up to Mars now 


Ed Weiler, Nasa 


The first picture sent back should show the wheels of the rover; later pictures will scan the landing pad and surrounding terrain. 

Commission checks will last a week before the rover rolls off the pad to start work. 

After the failure in 1999 of Nasa's Mars Polar Lander and Mars Climate Orbiter, the agency opened the rover project to independent scrutiny. 

Outside auditors have studied every detail in the plans, looking for any flaws which might scupper the mission. 

Ed Weiler said everything had been done that was humanly possibly to design the rover mission for success. 

"I don't know what else we can do to ensure success. It's up to Mars now," he said. 

The European Space Agency is still searching for the missing British-built Beagle 2. 

The probe was supposed to land on Mars on Christmas Day but never sent back a signal to confirm it had arrived safely. 

[meteorite-list] SPIRIT IS ALIVE & WELL ON MARS!!

[Greg redfern]

All,

NASA's 1st Mars Exploration Rover, Spirit, made a successful landing on
Mars AND comm lock with Earth just a few minutes ago!

  Stay tuned to NASA TV live or visit the MER web site at
http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/home/index.html. We may even get pictures
before the night is through.

Go Spirit!

Greg Redfern
2003 JPL NASA Solar System Ambassador
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/ambassador/index.html
International Meteorite Collectors Association #5781
http://www.meteoritecollectors.org/
Member Meteoritical Society
http://www.meteoriticalsociety.org/




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Re: [meteorite-list] Scientists Find Mars Meteorite (NWA 1950)

[Ron Baalke]

> Hi Ron,
> 
> First of all, congratulations to you and to your Team for the Stardust´s
> excellent pictures! WELL DONE!
>  Also, thanks for all your v. interesting info received last year, as well
> as for this one that I received just now, about the NWA 1950 Mars meteorite.
> Where can I see a picture of what it looks like, both on its inside and
> exterior side?

I have a photo of NWA 1950, but haven't had a chance to put it on my website just yet.
We're having a Mars landing tonight, and we've successfully landed!

It's been a great weekend, first with Stardust, and now with MER-A.

Ron Baalke

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[meteorite-list] Mars Exploration Rover Spirit Mission Status - January 3, 2004

[Ron Baalke]

MEDIA RELATIONS OFFICE
JET PROPULSION LABORATORY
CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION
PASADENA, CALIF. 91109.  TELEPHONE (818) 354-5011
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov

JPL Newsroom (818) 354-5011
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.

NEWS RELEASE: 2004-002   January 3, 2004

Mars Exploration Rover Spirit Mission Status

Navigators for NASA's Spirit Mars Exploration Rover put the spacecraft
so close to a bull's-eye with earlier maneuvers that mission managers
chose to skip the final two optional maneuvers for adjusting course
before arrival at Mars.

With less than four hours of flight time remaining, Spirit was on
course to land within a targeted ellipse 62 kilometers long by 3
kilometers wide (39 miles by 2 miles) within Mars' Gusev Crater.  A
trajectory correction maneuver scheduled for four hours before landing
was cancelled.

"The navigation status is truly excellent," said Dr. Lou D'Amario, the
mission's navigation team chief at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory,
Pasadena, Calif.  A slight trajectory adjustment on Dec. 26 was the
fourth and final for the flight.

Preparations in the past two days for arrival at Mars have included an
adjustment that will open Spirit's parachute about two seconds earlier
than it would have been without the change, in order to compensate for
recent weather on Mars. "A dust storm seen on the other side of the
planet has caused global heating and thinning of the atmosphere at
high altitudes" said JPL's Dr. Mark Adler, Spirit mission manager.

Also, engineers sent commands today to alter the timing when several
pyro devices (explosive bolts) will be put into an enabled condition
prior to firing.  Enabling will begin 40 minutes earlier than it would
have under previous commands.  These pyro devices will be fired to
carry out necessary steps of descent and landing, such as deploying
the parachute and jettisoning the heat shield.

Mars is 170 million kilometers (106 million miles) away from Earth
today, a distance that takes nearly 10 minutes for radio signals to
cross at the speed of light.  Counting that communication delay,
Spirit will hit the top of Mars' atmosphere at about 04:29 Jan. 4,
Universal Time (8:29 p.m. Jan. 3, Pacific Standard Time), and reach
the surface six minutes later.

JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena,
manages the Mars Exploration Rover project for NASA's Office of Space
Science, Washington, D.C. Additional information about the project is
available at 

http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov
http://www.nasa.gov

and from Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y., at

http://athena.cornell.edu/

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[meteorite-list] NASA Administrator Marks Successful Spirit on Mars

[Ron Baalke]

Glenn Mahone/Bob Jacobs
Headquarters, WashingtonJan. 04, 2004
(Phone: 202/358-1898/1600)

RELEASE: 04-001

NASA ADMINISTRATOR MARKS SUCCESSFUL SPIRIT ON MARS

 The following is a statement from NASA Administrator Sean 
O'Keefe regarding Saturday's successful landing of the first 
Mars Excursion Rover (MER), Spirit, on the Martian surface.

"Congratulations to the Mars Rover team on achieving a 
successful landing on the surface of Mars by the Rover Spirit. 
This amazing feat, coming so soon in the New Year, is a tribute 
to the dedication to the many men and women throughout NASA and 
our many partners who worked extremely hard to give our amazing 
rovers the best chance for success on their mission of 
exploration on the Red Planet.

"In a few weeks, Spirit's twin Opportunity will be landing on 
the other side of the planet. The rovers will soon begin their 
mission to search the rocks of Mars for signs that water may 
have been present for long periods of time--signs that may tell 
us whether Mars could have been hospitable to life in the 
past."

More information about the Mars rover missions is available on 
the Internet at:

http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/home/index.html

http://www.m2k4.com


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