(meteorobs) Meteorite pix

Bruce McCurdy bmccurdy at telusplanet.net
Wed Dec 3 13:07:25 EST 2008


    The meteorites in the initial find, including the one pictured with 
Ellen, were frozen into the ice and had to be chipped out with a geologist's 
hammer.

    The four fragments that Frank and I discovered the next day were also in 
ice. The two medium-sized fragments (2-3 cm) were embedded but could be 
lifted out, leaving a small depression in the ice with some liquid water in 
it. The larger fragment was frozen solid with just a portion protruding, and 
needed to be chipped out. The smallest one was also frozen in, and in fact 
the entire object was slightly below the surface.

    We got the distinct impression that there was a freeze/thaw process at 
play. The afternoon we discovered them the ice was a little soft in places, 
especially where direct sunlight fell (which was limited by the low sun 
angle and the fact the pond was in a valley). By then of course it was nine 
days after the fall, so this thaw/freeze process may well have been repeated 
on several occasions.

    I really have no idea if the meteorites came to rest exactly where they 
landed, or if they hit and bounced and their encasement in ice all occurred 
subsequently.

    I will shortly have access to Frank's pictures from our recovery zone; 
we only took one camera on that scramble down a rather daunting embankment. 
If there's a good close-up I will post it to the website.

    Bruce
    *****




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