[meteorite-list] NP Article, 07-1932 Meteor Crater Drilling

From: MARK BOSTICK <thebigcollector_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 10:25:35 2004
Message-ID: <BAY4-DAV116SWoBDyse0000021c_at_hotmail.com>

This is a multi-part message in MIME format.

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Title: Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune=20
City: Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin=20
Date: Saturday, July 09, 1932


Down to the Bottom of THE BIGGEST SHELL HOLE On Earth
After 30 years of drilling in Arizona's famous Meteor crater, engineers =
have located the main body of the comet that buried itself in the earth =
400 centuries ago and made a hole nearly a mile wide.

By Oren Arnold

     THEY'RE a little bit later about it - 40,000 years late - but it's =
nevertheless true that a group of people out in Arizona have just =
discovered the projectile that made the world's largest shell hole.
     Police will not be officially notified. An X to mark the spot =
where the body lay will not even be necessary, for the body is still =
there!
     And the wound is so big that people build houses and live right =
down in the middle of it. It's quite a story, with even a hint of =
celestial scandal included!
     In any consideration of this big shell, or bullet, or whatever it =
is called, the very first thing to do is to be deroutly thankful that it =
didn't waot a while a hit a big city. Any yet - one just like it may =
some day do that very thing!
     This one arrived 400 centuries or so ago, true enough, but a =
silumar one also fell as recently as 1908. And you won't have to write =
home about it, if you happen to be within 500 mies of where such a =
projectile strikes. Because likely you won't have a home any more, and =
there won't be any you!
     If Arizona's shot from the sun should be duplicated today and hit =
on Manhatten Island, 10 million lives would be lost in an instant.
     You'll have a hard time believing all the truths about this =
gargantuan bullet and its hole. Its size, for example. Can you imagine =
a bullet, made of 90 per cent iron, as big as the Capitol Building at =
Washington with a couple of courthouses thrown in?

     THIS one is. It's called the Barringer Meteorite, and hole is =
called Meteor "Mountain". The crater is a gigantic pockmark on the face =
of a barren plain in northern Arizona, between the towns of Flagstaff =
and Winslow.
     In 1871 some army scouts found the big hole and made an official =
report of it.
     For 30 years men have been studying and drilling into the crater =
trying to locate the bullet itself. And the currant big news is that =
the bullet is found.
     There it is, 500 to 1300 feet down in the wound it made, a big mass =
of gnarles, rugged iron weighing no one knows how many million pounds! =
Now, who wants the contract for hauling it around to exhibit the county =
fairs?
     "It may be big, but it isn't entirely a white elephant," says =
George M. Colvocoresses, technical head of the mining company exploring =
the crater.
     "An old spent bullet or iron like that might seen at first thought =
t be just a curiosity, of interest mainly to geologists and astronomers. =
 It is about 90 per cent iron. But that remaining 10 per cent - that's =
where we hope to 'get rich.'
     "IN that remaining portion, we have reason to believe, is enough =
nickel and platinum to pay us for our trouble and cost. It'll take some =
more time yet - remember we were 30 years finding this thing. But once =
we get to mining it, we ought to be depression-proof! Those ores are =
pretty valuable."
     Mr. Colvocoresses hastens to add that many unforeseen difficulties =
will probably he encountered. But right now he and his company are =
elated over locating the main body of the meteorite. Having drilled a =
small hole down to it, the next move is to sink a mine shaft big enough =
for workers and their tools to descend.
     Some diamonds, too, have been found in the meteorite, and in the =
myriad fragments that a flung off in landing here, but they are too =
small to be of any value except as curiosities. Maybe some big ones =
will be found as work progrsses.
     The late D. M. Barringer of Philadelphia made a scientific study of =
the crater shortly after 1900, and this resulted in the first =
exploration to locate the big bullet itself. Prior to that many people =
thought the crater was of ancient volcanic origin.
     That initial exploration - holes drilled in the very center of the =
crater - was done by the Standard Iron Company, but they failed to =
locate the meteorite.
     They had made the mistake of supposing that the bullet had come =
straight down. The supposition was costly, for it was later proved that =
the projectile struck a somewhat glancing blow from the north, hence did =
not bury itself exactly under the center of its hole.
     THE company directed by Mr. Colvocoreses bored under the south rim =
of the crater - not under the crater - and there met success. They =
drulled through all sorts of queer formations until they passed the =
1000=3Dfoot mark, then suddenly the drill bit became tightly stuck.
     All the power the drillers could put on it was wasted. The bit =
seemed to be wedged between iron boulders, and in trying to withdraw it =
the cable was broken and a valuable string of tools was lost. But the =
drillers had reached their goal.
     Meteor Crater literally fascinated every traveler who stumbles onto =
it, especially aviators on air tourists. It is an odd thing, surely.
     From rim to rim it is almost a mile wide. And the bottom is about =
600 feet below the rim. The hole is almost exactly round. The gigantic =
amphitheater is about 25 times the size of the famous Yale Bowl.
     The Barringer Meteorite was thrown off the molten sun (so th =
scientists tell)_ and wandered around for millions of years until it =
finally edged over into the earth's gravitational pull. When it got =
within the earth's atmosphere its terrific speed - 40 miles a second - =
gave rise to enough heat to melt its iron.
      THE first news of the bullet's coming probably was a roar like =
thunder. Then the heat of the thing and the terrible "swis-s-s-h" of =
its coming were climaxed by the most unearthly crash and tremble the =
North American contenent has ever known.
     Any persons or animals living within a hundred miles of the bull's =
eye must have died instantly. And the terrifying shock of the thing was =
felt as far away as Tucson and Denver and Los Angeles are today.
     Go out and throw a baseball into a pool of stiff mud, and see in =
miniature some of the physical effects of the meteor's landing. Note =
that mud splashes up and around a considerable area. Now, in your mind, =
multiply that phenomenon several billion times and you see what happened =
on that plain in northern Arizona.
     If your constitution demands statistics in such cases, consider =
this one: the Barringer Meteorite displaced at least 400,000,000,000 =
pounds of rick ad earth when it hit.
     In one second it moved material equal to one-fourth the total moved =
in construct the Panama Canal.

     THE bullet itself weighed probably 1,000,000 tons.
     The big mass of molten iron didn't all cling together and bury =
itself. Some fot he droplets splashed miles away, and there today you =
can see them or pick them up.
     Well, maybe you can't pick up many of them, for they are too heavy. =
 Astronished tourists discovered that. A fragment no bigger than your =
hat will weigh 60 to 100 pounds and some of the bigger ones seen about =
the crater rim have an estimated weight of one to 10 tons.
     In the area immediately around the crater have been found many more =
iron meteorites than have been found on all the rest of the earth's =
surface put together. The young comet just naturally split up into a =
lot of fragments when it hit, but the main body is still of considerable =
size.
     Those fragments of the earth's surface were regarded as curiosities =
for years. In 1886 a group of Mexican sheep herders in the region =
collected some of the metal and gave it to railroad contractors, who in =
turn sent it east, where it was identified as meteoric iron.

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<DIV>Title: Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune <BR>City: Wisconsin Rapids, =
Wisconsin=20
<BR>Date: Saturday, July 09, 1932</DIV>
<DIV>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><BR>Down to the Bottom of THE BIGGEST SHELL HOLE On Earth<BR>After =
30 years=20
of drilling in Arizona's famous Meteor crater, engineers have located =
the main=20
body of the comet that buried itself in the earth 400 centuries ago and =
made a=20
hole nearly a mile wide.</DIV>
<DIV>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV>By Oren Arnold</DIV>
<DIV>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; THEY'RE a little bit later about it - =
40,000 years=20
late - but it's nevertheless true that a group of people out in Arizona =
have=20
just discovered the projectile that made the world's largest shell=20
hole.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Police will not be officially =
notified.&nbsp;=20
An X to mark the spot where the body lay will not even be necessary, for =
the=20
body is still there!<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; And the wound is so big =
that=20
people build houses and live right down in the middle of it.&nbsp; It's =
quite a=20
story, with even a hint of celestial scandal=20
included!<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; In any consideration of this big =
shell, or=20
bullet, or whatever it is called, the very first thing to do is to be =
deroutly=20
thankful that it didn't waot a while a hit a big city.&nbsp; Any yet - =
one just=20
like it may some day do that very thing!<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; =
This one=20
arrived 400 centuries or so ago, true enough, but a silumar one also =
fell as=20
recently as 1908.&nbsp; And you won't have to write home about it, if =
you happen=20
to be within 500 mies of where such a projectile strikes.&nbsp; Because =
likely=20
you won't have a home any more, and there won't be any=20
you!<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; If Arizona's shot from the sun should =
be=20
duplicated today and hit on Manhatten Island, 10 million lives would be =
lost in=20
an instant.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; You'll have a hard time =
believing all=20
the truths about this gargantuan bullet and its hole.&nbsp; Its size, =
for=20
example.&nbsp; Can you imagine a bullet, made of 90 per cent iron, as =
big as the=20
Capitol Building at Washington with a couple of courthouses thrown =
in?</DIV>
<DIV>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; THIS one is.&nbsp; It's called the =
Barringer=20
Meteorite, and hole is called Meteor "Mountain".&nbsp; The crater is a =
gigantic=20
pockmark on the face of a barren plain in northern Arizona, between the =
towns of=20
Flagstaff and Winslow.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; In 1871 some army =
scouts=20
found the big hole and made an official report of=20
it.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; For 30 years men have been studying and =
drilling=20
into the crater trying to locate the bullet itself.&nbsp; And the =
currant big=20
news is that the bullet is found.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; There it =
is, 500=20
to 1300 feet down in the wound it made, a big mass of gnarles, rugged =
iron=20
weighing no one knows how many million pounds!&nbsp;&nbsp; Now, who =
wants the=20
contract for hauling it around to exhibit the county=20
fairs?<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; "It may be big, but it isn't entirely =
a white=20
elephant," says George M. Colvocoresses, technical head of the mining =
company=20
exploring the crater.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; "An old spent bullet =
or iron=20
like that might seen at first thought t be just a curiosity, of interest =
mainly=20
to geologists and astronomers.&nbsp; It is about 90 per cent iron.&nbsp; =
But=20
that remaining 10 per cent - that's where we hope to 'get=20
rich.'<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; "IN that remaining portion, we have =
reason to=20
believe, is enough nickel and platinum to pay us for our trouble and =
cost.&nbsp;=20
It'll take some more time yet - remember we were 30 years finding this=20
thing.&nbsp; But once we get to mining it, we ought to be=20
depression-proof!&nbsp; Those ores are pretty=20
valuable."<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Mr. Colvocoresses hastens to add =
that=20
many unforeseen difficulties will probably he encountered.&nbsp; But =
right now=20
he and his company are elated over locating the main body of the=20
meteorite.&nbsp; Having drilled a small hole down to it, the next move =
is to=20
sink a mine shaft big enough for workers and their tools to=20
descend.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Some diamonds, too, have been found =
in the=20
meteorite, and in the myriad fragments that a flung off in landing here, =
but=20
they are too small to be of any value except as curiosities.&nbsp; Maybe =
some=20
big ones will be found as work progrsses.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; =
The late=20
D. M. Barringer of Philadelphia made a scientific study of the crater =
shortly=20
after 1900, and this resulted in the first exploration to locate the big =
bullet=20
itself.&nbsp; Prior to that many people thought the crater was of =
ancient=20
volcanic origin.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; That initial exploration - =
holes=20
drilled in the very center of the crater - was done by the Standard Iron =

Company, but they failed to locate the =
meteorite.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;=20
They had made the mistake of supposing that the bullet had come straight =

down.&nbsp; The supposition was costly, for it was later proved that the =

projectile struck a somewhat glancing blow from the north, hence did not =
bury=20
itself exactly under the center of its hole.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; =
THE=20
company directed by Mr. Colvocoreses bored under the south rim of the =
crater -=20
not under the crater - and there met success.&nbsp; They drulled through =
all=20
sorts of queer formations until they passed the 1000=3Dfoot mark, then =
suddenly=20
the drill bit became tightly stuck.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; All the =
power=20
the drillers could put on it was wasted.&nbsp; The bit seemed to be =
wedged=20
between iron boulders, and in trying to withdraw it the cable was broken =
and a=20
valuable string of tools was lost.&nbsp; But the drillers had reached =
their=20
goal.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Meteor Crater literally fascinated =
every=20
traveler who stumbles onto it, especially aviators on air =
tourists.&nbsp; It is=20
an odd thing, surely.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; From rim to rim it is =
almost a=20
mile wide. And the bottom is about 600 feet below the rim.&nbsp; The =
hole is=20
almost exactly round.&nbsp; The gigantic amphitheater is about 25 times =
the size=20
of the famous Yale Bowl.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The Barringer =
Meteorite was=20
thrown off the molten sun (so th scientists tell)_ and wandered around =
for=20
millions of years until it finally edged over into the earth's =
gravitational=20
pull.&nbsp; When it got within the earth's atmosphere its terrific speed =
- 40=20
miles a second - gave rise to enough heat to melt its=20
iron.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; THE first news of the bullet's =
coming=20
probably was a roar like thunder.&nbsp; Then the heat of the thing and =
the=20
terrible "swis-s-s-h" of its coming were climaxed by the most unearthly =
crash=20
and tremble the North American contenent has ever=20
known.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Any persons or animals living within =
a=20
hundred miles of the bull's eye must have died instantly.&nbsp; And the=20
terrifying shock of the thing was felt as far away as Tucson and Denver =
and Los=20
Angeles are today.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Go out and throw a =
baseball into=20
a pool of stiff mud, and see in miniature some of the physical effects =
of the=20
meteor's landing.&nbsp; Note that mud splashes up and around a =
considerable=20
area.&nbsp; Now, in your mind, multiply that phenomenon several billion =
times=20
and you see what happened on that plain in northern=20
Arizona.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; If your constitution demands =
statistics in=20
such cases, consider this one: the Barringer Meteorite displaced at =
least=20
400,000,000,000 pounds of rick ad earth when it =
hit.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;=20
In one second it moved material equal to one-fourth the total moved in =
construct=20
the Panama Canal.</DIV>
<DIV>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; THE bullet itself weighed probably =
1,000,000=20
tons.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The big mass of molten iron didn't all =
cling=20
together and bury itself.&nbsp; Some fot he droplets splashed miles =
away, and=20
there today you can see them or pick them =
up.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Well,=20
maybe you can't pick up many of them, for they are too heavy.&nbsp; =
Astronished=20
tourists discovered that.&nbsp; A fragment no bigger than your hat will =
weigh 60=20
to 100 pounds and some of the bigger ones seen about the crater rim have =
an=20
estimated weight of one to 10 tons.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; In the =
area=20
immediately around the crater have been found many more iron meteorites =
than=20
have been found on all the rest of the earth's surface put =
together.&nbsp; The=20
young comet just naturally split up into a lot of fragments when it hit, =
but the=20
main body is still of considerable size.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; =
Those=20
fragments of the earth's surface were regarded as curiosities for =
years.&nbsp;=20
In 1886 a group of Mexican sheep herders in the region collected some of =
the=20
metal and gave it to railroad contractors, who in turn sent it east, =
where it=20
was identified as meteoric iron.<BR></DIV></BODY></HTML>

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Received on Sat 03 May 2003 04:51:37 PM PDT


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