Article-I.D.: wuphys.393
Posted: Tue Nov 12 17:11:41 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 14-Nov-85 07:16:01 EST
References: <12158214824.29.SCHMIDT@SUMEX-AIM.ARPA>
Organization: Physics Dept., Washington Univ. in St. Louis
Lines: 95
Summary: Re: catalog meteorites
In response to the question about the prices listed for
meteorite slices. The cost may or may not be
reasonable, and depends on several things. There are
many kinds of meteorites and some are rarer than
others, and hence more expensive.
The most common type of meteorite is called an
Ordinary Chondrite. These meteorites fall
predominantly into 3 'types' called the LL, L and H
Ord. Chondrites and between them they account for
roughly 90% of the observed meteorite falls. These
meteorites are made up of silicate minerals and contain
small (~1mm) marble like objects called chondrules
(hence the name chondrites).
There are many other rarer types of meteorites of which
I will name only a few. These include a wide variety
of iron and stony-iron meteorites, basaltic
achondrites, carbonaceous chondrites, and the SNC's.
What they are worth depends on how rare the
meteorite type is, how big the sample is, and what you want
them for. If you are looking for a gift to be displayed on a
shelf I'd recommend a polished slice of an iron
meteorite that's been etched to show its Widmanstatten
pattern, or even better, a polished slice of a
pallasite (a stony-iron). These types seem to have the
'sex-appeal' lots of people are looking for when they
buy meteorites. Most meteorites look like relatively
boring rocks to the uninitiated, however. I'd emphasis that if
you're buying to have something to look at, you want a _polished_
section. You'd probably also want a slice that
contained some of the meteorite's fusion crust, the
melted area that is formed near the surface of the
meteorite during atmospheric entry.
The true worth of a meteorite (in my opinion) is
based on its scientific value, since studies of
meteorites tell us alot about the origin of the solar
system, the formation of the elements, etc. This makes
the carbonaceous chondrites particularly special,
because they are thought to be very old and 'primitive'
meteorites. The C. chondrites are not particulary
exciting to look at, however. Another valuable
meteorite type is the SNC's (named after
Shergotty-Nakhla-Chassigny, the 3 major meteorites in
this group). These meteorites are of particular
scientific value because some (not all) scientists
think they may be from Mars. These meteorites look
even duller than the carboanceous chondrites. It is extremely
unlikely you'll find this type of meteorite for sale and it'd be
a crime if it were, as the sample should really be in a
laboratory somewhere.
The final upshot of this is that meteorites tend
to cost what private citizens are willing to pay for
them. A reasonable price is basically whatever you feel is
reasonable. I would recommend you not buy a meteorite
as an 'investment' for the simple reason that it's not
clear to me they appreciate. In fact there are more and
more meteorites being found all the time and they're
not as rare as they once were. During a scientific
expedition to Antarctica that I was on last year we
found almost 300 meteorites! You certainly will not be
able to sell your samples to scientists since they can
get what they need for free through scientific exchange
with museums and through programs like the one I was
involved with in Antarctica.
If you still want a meteorite just for display,
I'd really recommend that you get a polished section and
look at the section first so you know what you're
getting (otherwise you might get a boring piece of
black rock). Find out what type of meteorite the slice
is from so you can read up on what is known about it
and impress your friends. And finally, shop around.
Although I don't have any names in my files any more, I
know that there are several business that do nothing
but sell meteorites (including a road side stand near
Rancho de Chimayo in N.M., not far from where I grew
up). Perhaps one of them can give you a better deal.
I wouldn't be surprised if you cut your costs
significantly by looking around.
I hope this answered the question. If not I can
always try again.
Scott Sandford
McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences
Box 1105
Washington University Physics Department
St. Louis, Missouri 63130
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