(meteorobs) FireballField Investigation: North Central Kentucky 13 Feb 09

[Ed Majden]

Can anyone help Elton with this?  I can't be of much help from  
Western Canada.
Ed Majden
Courtenay, B.C. Canada.

Begin forwarded message:

> From: Mr EMan <mstreman53 at yahoo.com>
> Date: February 19, 2009 5:52:32 PM PST
> To: epmajden at shaw.ca
> Subject: FireballField Investigation: North Central Kentucky 13 Feb 09
>
>
> Dear Ed,
>
> This is Elton Jones from the meteorite central list.  I am  
> investigating the London Kentucky fireball of 13 Feb 09 2200EST and  
> am walking into an area with no written protocol for conducting a  
> search or for how to bridge collaboration with academics in the  
> field. I've my notes from my efforts in researching the  
> Pennsylvania Wellsboro Day time fireball And Neuswanstein Germany  
> fireball/meteorite search somewhere in storage. So I am making my  
> list.  Much of it involves a sponsoring research organization of  
> which I have no current affiliations--yet another gulf twixt  
> amateurs and educators.  I've long admired your Canada's formal  
> Meteor and Impact advisory Council and the fact that you have an  
> organization in place when these opportunities occur.
>
> Right now:
>  I am trying to find if anyone has a published check list if not  
> who wants to write one after I get the lessons learned from the  
> current effort.
>
> I am also trying to get the USAF downgraded fireball data (if any)  
> which used to come to me via another list member who got it from a  
> Canadian researcher.  Does any of this ring a bell?
>
> I have a suspicion that trajectory data might be derived from  
> weather radar data tapes which may have caught the ion train or  
> vaporized iron and silicate.  I have seen reports that two separate  
> radars did get returns from the Texas fireball of Feb 15.  The  
> closest radar( Lexington, KY) was not in service at the time of the  
> fall. If I do find the data tapes I'll need an expert to review the  
> 15 minutes proximate to the 10:04-10:08 reported fall time.
>
> I have spend the better parts of 3 days contacting the FAA getting  
> the run around or else no returned calls regarding air traffic  
> control radar tapes OR I keep getting referred to the Dept. of  
> Homeland Security.   I need someone who believes in the merit of  
> this approach to contact the appropriate FAA department to at lease  
> insure the data is preserved for now.  The FAA as you know has a  
> bit of egg on its face and there are those in that agency that  
> still believe every fireball that fell over the world this past  
> weekend was from a satellite collision.
>
> I would be indebted if you are in a position to advise and to refer  
> me to any of your colleagues that are willing to assist with me  
> doing most of the field work.  As you know I am in this for the  
> science and am not a professional meteorite hunter and my major  
> interest includes establishing a procedure's manual for how to  
> assemble data and organize a search after some analysis to assess  
> the likelihood that a given fireball could have been a meteorite  
> dropping event.  I do occasionally work with Larry Taylor of the  
> University of Tennessee at Knoxville regarding campus projects and  
> petrology.  Unfortunately he and all his grad students are tied up  
> in prep for a Lunar Planetary Conference.  One of my goals is to  
> acquire samples for my academic "lifelines"
>
> That said, please feel free to forward this to as many folks as may  
> be interested in assisting advising.  I can answer some questions  
> easier via telephone.
>
> Elton Jones
> Knoxville, Tenn, USA
> Cell 865-356-4360   mstreman53 at yahoo.com
>