[meteorite-list] He's A Rock Star (Pallasite Meteorite Found In Canada)

From: Ron Baalke <baalke_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 10:01:33 2004
Message-ID: <200206131659.JAA07853_at_zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>

http://www.canoe.ca/LondonNews/lf.lf-06-13-0038.html

He's a rock star

When Londoner Carl Young stumbled on this 2.5-kilogram rock two years ago,
he had no idea it was actually a rare pallasite meteorite that may be 4.5
billion years old.

By NICOLE MACINTYRE
The London Free Press (Canada)
June 13, 2002

Amateur rock hound Carl Young has earned the ultimate bragging rights.

But the modest Londoner says pure luck led to his discovery of one of the
rarest meteorites in the world on the shores of Lake Huron.

"The chances of finding one are almost the same as finding a snowball in . .
.,"said Young, who spends his summers in the Owen Sound area.

Young was searching for driftwood when he stumbled upon the 2.5-kilogram
rock in April 2001.

With his suspicions aroused by the unusually heavy weight of the rock, he
turned to the experts at the University of Western Ontario.

"I think there are probably hundreds of people that would have walked right
by it," said earth sciences professor Neil MacRae, who was impressed by the
rare find, which may be as much as 4.5 billion years old.

The pallasite meteorite, one containing both metallic and silicate minerals,
is the 52nd found in the world and the third in Canada.

"When you're talking numbers that low, it's certainly significant
scientifically," said MacRae.

Scientists have a special interest in meteorites, he said, because they
offer valuable information about the core of the Earth. Made of the same
materials, meteorites help prove theories about a part of the Earth that is
unreachable.

It took more than a year to discover the meteorite's composition, which was
vital in determining whether it had fallen elsewhere and been transported by
humans or was a new fall.

MacRae found the meteorite's chemical "signature" was similar to the famous
Brenham pallasite meteorite that fell in Kansas in 1882. Pieces of that
space rock have been sold around the world.

But a chemical "fingerprint" of Young's meteorite completed by Stephen
Kissin at Lakehead University proved the meteorite is unique and a new fall.

"I'm glad it's finally settled . . . it was worth the wait," said Young, who
has donated a section of the valuable rock to Western for display.

In turn, the university will make the sample available for testing to
researchers around the world, said MacRae.

Young is working to have the meteorite officially registered with the
Meteoritical Society Bulletin.

Following a tradition to name a meteorite after the nearest post office,
Young's find will be nicknamed the Southampton Pallasite.
Received on Thu 13 Jun 2002 12:59:07 PM PDT