[meteorite-list] Tektites: lunar/terrestrial

From: Matson, Robert <ROBERT.D.MATSON_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 09:43:30 2004
Message-ID: <AF564D2B9D91D411B9FE00508BF1C8698E550F_at_US-Torrance.mail.saic.com>

Hi Karl (aka Joseph) and List,

> my view on this intriguing subject is that most tektites are lunar
> the reason is that if they are terrestrial what is the parent rock(s)???

At first blush, it would appear that you are implying that if
tektites don't have a terrestrial origin, then the moon is
the only other option. But what if someone is able to rule
out the moon based on some evidence -- where does that leave
you?

I am not a tektite expert, but I ~am~ a celestial mechanics
expert, and in my opinion there is no dynamical mechanism by
which lunar material can be launched toward earth (either by
lunar volcanism, lunar impact, or a combination of the two)
and not reenter more or less randomly over the entire surface
of the earth. The earth only subtends about 1.8 degrees as
seen from the moon. Angular dispersion following impact (or
eruption) from the lunar surface would thus cause lunar tektites
to be captured by earth at all latitudes and longitudes over
a period of perhaps thousands of years. But do we find
tektites all over the earth? No. They are found in fairly
specific regions. This, in my opinion, is a fatal flaw with
the lunar-source hypothesis.

Cheers,
Rob
Received on Mon 09 Jul 2001 11:09:15 PM PDT