[meteorite-list] 93 Kilo Druid Meteorite

From: Galactic Stone & Ironworks <meteoritemike_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Sat, 11 Feb 2012 13:20:05 -0500
Message-ID: <CAKBPJW89tawRcvZpkAeUPhDqjnLVCB+HHFwfciQHORSe6RU_dg_at_mail.gmail.com>

Hi Phil and List,

The smaller Danebury stone is in the Met Bulletin. The larger stone
is not. I'm curious if the institution holding the larger stone has
any plans to get it classified and approved by NonCom?

Second question - did the Druids have any idea this stone was from the
sky? Or did they just find a heavy rock and keep it?

Best regards,

MikeG
-- 
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On 2/11/12, dorifry <dorifry at embarqmail.com> wrote:
> And they found a smaller one in a grain pit!:
>
> http://news.discovery.com/space/druids-meteorite-stonehenge-ice-age-120209.html
>
>
> Large Meteorite Likely Found in Druid Burial Site
> Britain's largest space rock -- excavated 200 years ago by an archaeological
> dig -- was preserved by the Ice Age.
>
> Thu Feb 9, 2012 04:01 PM ET
> Content provided by Jeanna Bryner, LiveScience
>
> THE GIST
>   a.. In a new exhibition, the 205 pound meteorite is on display, along with
> its mysterious story.
>   b.. The space rock was likely found by druids to build a burial chamber
> and later unearthed by archaeologists near Stonehenge.
>   c.. Scientists believe that the meteorite was preserved by the onset of
> the Ice Age.
>
> enlarge
> The 205 pound meteorite likely crashed to Earth 30,000 years ago -- it was
> then preserved by the freezing conditions of the Ice Age. Click to enlarge
> this image.
> Credit: Open University
>
>
> With a weight that rivals a baby elephant, a meteorite that fell from space
> some 30,000 years ago is likely Britain's largest space rock. And after much
> sleuthing, researchers think they know where it came from and how it
> survived so long without weathering away.
>
> The giant rock, spanning about 1.6 feet (0.5 meters) across and weighing 205
> pounds (93 kilograms), was likely discovered by an archaeologist about 200
> years ago at a burial site created by the Druids (an ancient Celtic
> priesthood) near Stonehenge, according to said Colin Pillinger, a professor
> of planetary sciences at the Open University.
>
> ANALYSIS: Forget Space Beer, Order Meteorite Wine Instead
>
> Pillinger curated the exhibition "Objects in Space," which opened Feb. 9 and
> is the first time the public will get a chance to see the meteorite. The
> exhibition will explore not only the mystery that surrounds the origins of
> the giant meteorite, but also the history and our fascination with space
> rocks.
>
> As for how the meteorite survived its long stint on Earth, researchers point
> to the ice age.
>
> "The only meteorites that we know about that have survived these long ages
> are the ones that were collected in Antarctica," said Pillinger, adding that
> more recently, some ancient meteorites have been collected in the Sahara
> Desert. This rock came from neither the Sahara Desert nor Antarctica, but
> rather the Lake House in Wiltshire.
>
> "Britain was under an ice age for 20,000 years," Pillinger told LiveScience,
> explaining the climate would have protected the rock from weathering.
>
> At some point, the Druids likely picked up the meteorite when scouting for
> rocks to build burial chambers. "They were keen on building burial sites for
> [the dead] in much the same way the Egyptians built the pyramids," Pillinger
> said.
>
> SCIENCE CHANNEL: Meteorite Men Videos
>
> Then, years later, an archaeologist with ties to other, famous
> archaeologists, likely found the rock while excavating the Druids' burial
> sites, he said. The archaeologist then brought the rock back to his house in
> Wiltshire, where its more recent residents took notice and alerted
> researchers.
>
> "The men whose house this was found at spent a lot of time opening these
> burial sites 200 years ago for purposes of excavating them," Pillinger said.
> "Our hypothesis is that the stone probably came out of one of those burial
> chambers."
>
>
> WATCH VIDEOS: FROM METEORS TO ASTEROIDSThe meteorite is called a chondrite,
> a group that includes primitive meteorites that scientists think were
> remnants shed from the original building blocks of planets. Most meteorites
> found on Earth fit into this group.
>
> ANALYSIS: Farmer Finds Rare Meteorite
>
> Other objects on display include a much smaller meteorite, weighing about an
> ounce (32 grams), and excavated from a grain pit where ancient peoples of
> the Iron Age stored their crops. It was discovered in the 1970s at Danebury
> Hill Fort in Hampshire, though it wasn't until the 1980s when scientists
> analyzed metal in the walnut-size object did they realize its
> extraterrestrial origin.
>
> The exhibition will also include a Damien Hirst "spot painting," which
> features the famous Beagle 2 spacecraft as its center spot. In addition,
> part of Newton's apple tree will be on display.
>
> The story of how researchers are uncovering the origins of these impressive
> specimens will astonish and delight visitors to this remarkable exhibition,
> which also contains letters and books charting the history of scientific
> interest in meteorites.
>
> The Royal Society's London headquarters will house the exhibit through March
> 30.
>
> ---------------------
>
> Phil Whitmer
>
> Joshua Tree Earth & Space Museum
>
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Received on Sat 11 Feb 2012 01:20:05 PM PST


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