[meteorite-list] Museum investigation: 'Probably a rock, not meteorite'

From: Jason Utas <meteoritekid_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Wed, 14 Apr 2010 10:52:55 -0700
Message-ID: <g2r93aaac891004141052za963a3f9ife35d1fd0cccc017_at_mail.gmail.com>

Carl, All,

I wouldn't equate it at all to the pole analogy, because...well, it's
different. The pole is already owned by someone to begin with.

You can't really argue that, if I hit a pole with my car, I will gain
the right to own it. Even if my car is parked and a telephone pole
falls on it, that pole is still the property of whoever owned the pole
- if it weren't, the pole would become mine and I would have to pay
for the damages caused by *my* pole.
And if anything that hits my car becomes mine...well, let's just say
that I'm sorely tempted to try to drive my way into the lobby of the
AMNH and give good ole' Willamette a nudge with my bumper.

The only reason that this is debatable is because meteorites are
different. They're not like anything terrestrial in that no one owns
them before they hit the ground. If I pick anything up off of the
surface of the earth, at this point in time, it already belongs to
someone - unless I manage to find it in international waters, in which
case I might be able to get away with claiming ownership with no
strings attached (I'm excluding Antarctica, for obvious reasons).
There are disputed borders and crap like that, granted, but everything
has already been claimed, at least once.

Not meteoroids. Existing meteorites, yes, but meteoroids, up there in
space, destined to fall, are still unclaimed property.

It's why they're different.

In this case, I think the most relevant issue has to do with renters
versus owners being able to claim meteorites. Ideally I think that it
should depend on the existing contract - if the renter is liable to
fix damages, it seems to me that they should have the right to the
stone, and if the owner is responsible, surely they should get the
stone.
But then a question would arise - what about the owner who has made a
contract that, while it holds the renter liable for damages, makes an
exception for when a meteorite falls through their roof, offering to
pay for the one-time-repairs and asking for the meteorite...in that
case, wouldn't the renter have the option of saying no, and then
keeping the stone if they paid for the repairs, as was contractually
asked of them?

Interesting stuff...

Jason


On Wed, Apr 14, 2010 at 10:24 AM, <cdtucson at cox.net> wrote:
> Steve,
> This St. louis Meteorite is interesting. What if the car had been ?driving on private land? As ?discussed previously on this list, this should be referred to in the Lorton Court Case. As that meteorite also never did hit actual Earth. It hit legally rented space and was ?found in much the same way as a car that hits a telephone pole. Do you say the "pole found the car"? I think not! ?Yes, Lorton was found but was much more than that. It was a "Fall". Silly?
>
> http://www.meteorman.org/St_Louis_Meteorite.htm
>
>
> --
> Carl or Debbie Esparza
> Meteoritemax
>
>
> ---- MeteorHntr at aol.com wrote:
>> In a message dated 4/13/2010 4:29:53 P.M. Central Daylight Time,
>> veomega at gmail.com writes:
>> "Then, on the bounce, it touches the Earth and ?becomes the Property of
>> The State."
>>
>> So if a meteoroid embeds itself ?into your car, or you catch it before
>> it hits the ground (ya, improbable as ?it seems), or if bounces off a
>> cow and you catch it, does it belong to you ?now since it did not
>> become a meteorite?
>>
>> - YvW
>> ***************
>>
>> Veomega,
>>
>> As I understand, the St. Louis meteorite hit a car and stayed in it ?while
>> it was being driven down a city street. ?On an aside, I don't think ?the
>> City of St. Louis asserted any claim that it was their ?property.
>>
>> Steve Arnold
>> of Meteorite Men
>>
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Received on Wed 14 Apr 2010 01:52:55 PM PDT