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Kansas Soil Yields Massive Meteorite 172

Posted by ScuttleMonkey from the that-rocks dept.
ROMRIX writes "The Discovery Channel is reporting that Scientists have unearthed a 154 pound meteorite from a Kansas field using ground penetrating radar. The article also states that this type of radar may someday be used on Mars to locate water in a future mission."
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Kansas Soil Yields Massive Meteorite More

Kansas Soil Yields Massive Meteorite

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  • Superman? (Score:3, Funny)

    by DaSniper ( 927430 ) on Wednesday October 18, 2006 @01:24AM (#16481149) Homepage
    So superman real right? heh knew it all along.

  • Don't wait until we get to Mars... (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Arathon ( 1002016 ) on Wednesday October 18, 2006 @01:25AM (#16481153) Journal
    There are plenty of other places in our own world that could probably benefit from the discovery of water...try Africa. It seems like maybe that should be a higher priority?

    • Re:Don't wait until we get to Mars... (Score:5, Informative)

      by jginspace ( 678908 ) <.jginspace. .at. .yahoo.com.> on Wednesday October 18, 2006 @01:40AM (#16481241) Homepage Journal
      "There are plenty of other places in our own world that could probably benefit from the discovery of water...try Africa.

      Hum, check out the predictions: http://www.unep.org/vitalwater/21.htm [unep.org] - the US and half of Europe could be joining the club soon.

      • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

        by inKubus ( 199753 )
        Too bad most water is used for irrigation and landscaping. Basically, we just need to cut down on our beef consumption (which wastes more water than almost anything) and close a few golf courses.

        • Re:Don't wait until we get to Mars... (Score:5, Insightful)

          by killjoe ( 766577 ) on Wednesday October 18, 2006 @02:41AM (#16481547)
          Get rid of the lawns. Lawn grass required over two inches of rain per week (or the equavalent in sprinklers) and does nothing. Plant native grasses, put in rocks, put in bark, or better yet plant some vegetables and feed yourself too.

          • Re:Don't wait until we get to Mars... (Score:5, Informative)

            by rucs_hack ( 784150 ) on Wednesday October 18, 2006 @02:46AM (#16481573)
            The problem is exotics (being any plant 'out of place')

            Local plants don't need watering, or they wouldn't survive in the area to start with.

            Plus 'weeds' (being usually perfectly good plants that just aren't exotics) will normally prosper during hosepipe bans. We've had one over the last six months, and the local plants in our garden have barely noticed.

            Ideally people would switch to local plants and save water. Alas that's about as likely as people not wanting dyed clothes (dying eats loads of water) or makeup, or any of the other things that we use to display our prosperity.

            • Weeds (Score:3, Informative)

              by Cr33pybusguy ( 1012459 )
              I would like to clarify about your weeds comment. At least in Alberta Canada (part of the great plains the bread basket of the world) ahref=http://www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/$department/dept docs.nsf/all/acts4705?opendocument/rel=url2html-95 8 [slashdot.org]http://www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/$department/deptdocs. nsf/all/acts4705?opendocument/> This list of weeds is pretty much standard for Canada and (my guess) the states. It's also a safe bet to say that 99% of them are NOT native to north america. Case in point the tumble weed i

              • Re: (Score:2, Informative)

                by Cr33pybusguy ( 1012459 )
                Goddamn I need to learn HTML if I'm going to post more often.
                The link is
                http://www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/$department/deptdocs.n sf/all/acts4705?opendocument [gov.ab.ca]
                Cut and paste until I learn.
                A nice simple online guide reference would be nice if any one knows one.
                • well ok, I don't know about the colonies... [ducks]

                  I'm in the UK, and I do find it irritating that some of our nice native plants that are often required by native fauna are ripped up and replaced with unsuitable but 'pretty' plants that then require pandering/watering constantly.
                  I don't have much technical knowledge in the area, but I have had friends who did, and despaired at the damage exotics cause.

                  The link seems to have been slashdotted, it won't open (serves you right for being informative :), but I'l
                  • Its not the modern gardeners that have caused the problems, but the Victorians who introduced the invasive species that are causeing problems in the UK. Particular problem plants are Rhododendron [wikipedia.org] and Japanese Knotweed [netregs.gov.uk].

                    Unfortunately, a solid core of fuckwits [gardenadvice.co.uk] still raom the garden centers of olde Englande. There was some guy on TV last year proudly displaying his Knotweed, not really understanding that his grass clippings were controlled waste [netregs.gov.uk] and required special documents to be allowed to legally dispose

                    • ah, Rhododendron, that's the one. I went to the south of england a few years ago with a friend, and he ranted on about them, they seemed to be everywhere.

                      I knew about the victorians, those grand gardens and their competition to have the finest plants left us with a whole load of problems.

                      I prefer the semi-wilderness aproach to gardening, a nice lawn, some paving for social events, and a large unmanaged area in which can be found all sorts of insects and animals. Some find that untidy, but I like the variety

                    • Re: (Score:2)

                      by Gilmoure ( 18428 )
                      We have the same problem here in the states, with people back around turn of the century (19c to 20c) bringing in all sorts of scrappy plants from China (kudzu comes to mind).
                    • I would love to let my yard grow into wild grasses, but the damn city would fine me and send a guy over to mow it (then bill me $300 for the mowing). They would then throw it on my taxes if I refuse to pay.

                      I lived in Barstow California (death valley) for a couple years. It disgusted me how many people had lawns which were watered every day. Hell, some little areas in town even mandated having a lawn. These are 2 of the top reason's I couldn't live there. If we could find a way to get water easily i
                    • Would they fine you for having wild grasses or for not mowing? Couldn't you have wild grasses, but mow them? (Maybe the wild grasses wouldn't survive that environment, but I suspect they would adapt quite nicely.)
                    • it's more to do with the habitat. Grasses need not to be mown for wildlife to be attracted to them. We have hedgehogs (lovely things that keep down the slugs), butterflies, and a pair of greentits that have nested in our garden for years.

                      There are disadvantages, we now can't use a portion of our patio because of birdsnests we daren't disturb. Still watching the parents feed them is a joy.
                    • I suspect the wild grasses would be out competed by the regular grass, otherwise I would have wild grasses now. There is a height limit for the grass, like 6 inches or something. I think most communities have such limits, they just usually are not an issue. Also, mowing it wouldn't really save me any time/money, nor help the environment. My only solution is to just gripe about it to everyone I know until I can afford to buy a place out of town. At least it isn't one of the communities where every hous
                • A nice simple online guide reference would be nice if any one knows one.

                  I used this site [htmlhelp.com] a lot when I was first learning my html skillz. Be warned, /. allows a very limited subset of html in comments, so you don't have to learn too much to get around here.

                  Oh, and welcome from a fellow Canadian!
            • Saving water...right. Clearly you're not speaking for everywhere.

              I wish that the grass in our lawn grew less. There's been times when I had to mow every four days. You can almost hear the grass growing. That's because it rains every single day for at least 15 minutes during the summer, and about twice a week during the winter.

              No sane person waters their yard. No one wants their grass to grow into three feet long strands that are sharp like knives.

              I live in a maritime zone (specifically, Florida). I im

              • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

                by Jonny do good ( 1002498 )
                Fireboy1919,

                I don't know what you are talking about, almost everyone in Florida has an irrigation system and uses it for 6 months a year. During the dry season the grass will dry up and die without irrigation. I don't think people should use grass in Florida, it isn't native and hogs valuable groundwater reserves. The recent increase in sinkhole formation in Florida is correlated with the decline in the water table, particularly in Central Florida. Sinkholes are a natural occurrence but they haven't happene
                • it isn't native

                  Yes it is. [wikipedia.org]

                  The grass in my yard is named after the location it comes from, and it comes from South Florida. Some people have irrigation systems for the dry season, but the grass will recover from any loss during the dry season even if you leave it alone. It has to get so scorching as to be dangerous for people before it'll really hurt the grass.
                  It grows here naturally.
            • Lawn does nothing??? Comeon, lawns are excellent at fixing carbon. Think of all those clippings going off to be buried at a land fill. If it is always buried together, then in a few million years, it will make a nice coal bed to be exploited again for electricity production...
          • Cattle could be replaced with buffalo. They need far less maintenance, are immune to many cattle diseases, and their hooves + movement patterns actually help cultivate the grasslands.

            • Re: (Score:2)

              by Nate B. ( 2907 )
              And nowhere near as easy/safe to work with. Bison are still very much a wild beast and as such don't take to a human presence very well.

              I saw a feature on the RFD channel (379 on DirecTV) last fall about a Canadian rancher's setup for Bison. Everything was structured so that the animals had no human contact or could not easily see them as they were worked. At no time were the workers in the pens with the animals.

              Contrast this to cattle where, except for the odd bull or cow that is protecting her newborn
              • And nowhere near as easy/safe to work with. Bison are still very much a wild beast and as such don't take to a human presence very well.

                That's nothing that a dozen generations of selective breeding can't fix.

                • Re: (Score:2)

                  by AJWM ( 19027 )
                  And nowhere near as easy/safe to work with. Bison are still very much a wild beast and as such don't take to a human presence very well.

                  That's nothing that a dozen generations of selective breeding can't fix.

                  Or even fewer generations of crossbreeding [wikipedia.org].

                  Mmm, beefalo.

            • Re: (Score:1)

              by osee ( 944334 )
              And you can have all the milk you can get off buffalos.
              I'll stick to regular cows. They are hard enough to milk and they are not nearly as twitchy as buffalos.

          • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

            by value_added ( 719364 )
            Get rid of the lawns. Lawn grass required over two inches of rain per week (or the equavalent in sprinklers) and does nothing. Plant native grasses, put in rocks, put in bark, or better yet plant some vegetables and feed yourself too.

            A good idea where possible, and definitely something to strive towards, but not realistic. First good luck on finding native grasses; at best maybe you may find an Indian who remembers them being mentioned in the stories his or her great grandfather told. Second, rocks, bark,
          • I can gurantee my lawn doesn't get that. Sure, it looks like shit. But it's alive.

      • Re:Don't wait until we get to Mars... (Score:5, Informative)

        by foxhound01 ( 661872 ) on Wednesday October 18, 2006 @01:56AM (#16481325)
        Ground penetrating radar will likely not be as effective in places like africa which tends to have a lot of salt in the ground in areas where water is no longer available. This technology is often used by the military in order to find things like hidden weapons and landmines, though is virtually ineffective in many desert areas due to the sodium deposits from salt. fortunately for mars, there probably isn't the problem with salts in the soils, and this method should be highly effective.

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by AJWM ( 19027 )
          Actually the problem isn't so much the salt as moisture in the soil. Water soaks up radar big time.

          Indeed, one of the surprise discoveries from an early Shuttle radar-mapping mission was that, over the Sahara, they were getting back images from several meters under the sand, showing old water courses and in some cases ruins of early settlements quite well.

          In general ground penetrating radar works better in less conductive soils. Damp soils with high salt content are more conductive than damp soils without,

    • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

      by Shimdaddy ( 898354 )
      Correct me if I'm wrong, but since when does Africa have massive quantities of water frozen slightly beneath its surface? Plus, I'd always heard that most of Africa has decent access to water, but it was the purification that was the problem -- hence few people dying of thirst outright, and most getting sick of water borne illnesses.

      • Re: (Score:2, Interesting)

        by Arathon ( 1002016 )
        From what I read, the technology isn't limited to "slightly below the surface." Secondly, you might find that people in the Sahara would disagree with you about massive quantities of water. Lastly, I'm not qualified to recommend where specifically the technology be used to benefit people; just qualified to suggest that perhaps Mars shouldn't be the first place we think of when we think about looking for water... On the other hand, your point about purification is well received. From what I have heard, y

      • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

        by jginspace ( 678908 )
        "since when does Africa have massive quantities of water frozen slightly beneath its surface?"

        People following that logic ten years ago were telling us oil was going to have run out by about now. Using new technology they found extra reserves where they couldn't have looked before.

        But yes, using groundwater to alleviate the country's problems doesn't sound like a great solution. Lack of seasonal fluctuations in supply will lessen the awareness of scarcity (ie they'll leave the taps dripping) or they'l
        • "Using new technology they found extra reserves where they couldn't have looked before."

          Crap, uneconomic sources are simply becoming economic due to increased demand and the finite nature of oil reserves. During the nineties I read about how oil sands would be economical by about 2010. I think they were a tad optomistic, mining oil sand is exactly what they are doing in Canada today.

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by MoralHazard ( 447833 )
      To paraphrase the late, great, Sam Kinison, why don't we just give them Winnebagos so they can go where the water is?

      But seriously... Most of Africa's population ISN'T living in the desert, like you're imagining. Africa has lots of other climates, and most of the populated areas get plenty of rainfall. (That makes sense, doesn't it? People tend to congregate in areas where they don't DIE OF THIRST.)

      Honestly, Africa has suffered its droughts and famines, but rarely is it the case that there is no food. I
      • Why the fuck do they need winnebagos? If I'm dying somewhere and don't have money, it's time to friggen walk. I can't believe how many people complain about africa, yet fail to realize it was never any different at any other time in history. If you are dying because of the climate you are in, you deserve it because you weren't smart enough to realize it's time to get the fuck out of there. Just about anyone can pick up a walking stick and start walking. Hell, fuck the stick, just walk.

      • And generally, the poverty comes from bad government--they don't have access to education, health care, and the other niceties that us Slashdot posters take for granted.

        Amusing definition of 'bad government' you have there.

        The American pioneers did not have education, health care, or any niceties either. But they did have a good government, which cracked down on predation and left everyone else the hell alone.

        Yes, I know that the early government also committed evils. But the vital, essential point, is

        • I think you take me for a liberal. A mistaken impression, but I may have left it while trying to quickly make a point. Government isn't necessarily resposible for providing education and health positively, unless you're a commie, but it shouldn't be actively preventing people from having them. Unfortunately, that's exactly the case in much of Africa.

          The complicated version of Africa's politics and sufferings is that decades of awful governments have made corruption and authoritarianism the dominant polit

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by geobeck ( 924637 )

        ...Africa has suffered its droughts and famines, but rarely is it the case that there is no food.

        Been there, seen that. I taught in Malawi about ten years ago. Malawi is a poor country (like almost every country in Africa), and many of its residents suffer from a number of nutritional deficiencies, such as vitamin A blindness. What struck me most about the situation is how unnecessary it is.

        Here's a typical situation: A family works a tiny subsistence plot, growing vegetables. They take the vegeta

  • Using ground penetrating radar, huh? (Score:5, Funny)

    by patio11 ( 857072 ) on Wednesday October 18, 2006 @01:25AM (#16481155)
    I'd hate to get in the way of that radar if its moving 154 pound meteorites. My back of the envelope math suggests you could use it to microwave pizza leftovers the size of a small country. Like China.

    • Re: (Score:2, Funny)

      by potatoeater ( 999315 )
      Goody, more penetration experts.

    • Re: (Score:1)

      by Denney ( 947351 )
      Parent is funny (referring to summary which indicates that it was the radar that moved the 154 pound meteorite). So... ummm.... why was it modded "interesting" ??
      • Some people don't moderate things funny because while it gains no karma for the poster it can lose it if it is moderated down.This can lead to a post with a score of +5 funny costing the poster all of there karma as it is flucturates up and down.

        It is, however, strange that underated isn't used.
    • I'm guessing the approximate rate of value for a meteorite changes when it is this large. Because I'd love to have a 157lb ~ 71.2140021 kilograms when 1 gram is worth about $10 Canadian [$8.80 US]

  • Wait, where in Kansas? (Score:5, Funny)

    by nurhussein ( 864532 ) on Wednesday October 18, 2006 @01:27AM (#16481163) Homepage
    Is it Smallville, Kansas? Because, uh, if it is, that's no ordinary meteorite...

  • How many more have been mislabelled as mere rocks? (Score:4, Insightful)

    by BadAnalogyGuy ( 945258 ) <BadAnalogyGuy@gmail.com> on Wednesday October 18, 2006 @01:29AM (#16481173)
    I wonder, over the many millions of years that the earth has been around, how many other meteorites of this size or larger have struck ground and subsequently been covered with layers of dirt only to be uncovered later by construction workers who don't understand the value of the space rock, much less identify it as one.

    One good thing about our travels to Mars is that every single person who will be there, at least for the early phases of the colony, will be scientists, so we won't have to worry about mislabelled meteorites.
    • Well it all depends...If the scientists are all from Kansas they will hardly believe all this nonsense like rocks from space (the heavens don't have rocks, duh!) and really you'd think any major 'rocks from the sky' that would have splashed down in the last seven thousand years would be in the document of histroy (aka The Bible) right? Plus of course with Bush in control of America and his Texan background of belief he'd probably set a requirement that any one setting foot on this Mars place that hes heard
      • You are an idiot. ID is not taught in Texas, and Bush is from Connecticut, so stop blaming him on us.

        • Re: (Score:2, Funny)

          by fprintf ( 82740 )
          Bush was only born in Connecticut and then went to college here. From what I hear, he grew up in his formative years (e.g. Toddler through Middle School) in Texas. I'd say that makes him more Texan than a nutmeger.

          http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_w._bush#Early_ life [wikipedia.org]

          So don't blame him on us either!
        • I guess you're not familiar with satire...or even long term memory? I am aware ID is not taught in Texas though Bush identifies with that state (and to the causal overseas observer appears to be from that state, I plead ignorance on that correction) and he has bible studies every Thursday in the White House. Hence I was linking the state of the Kansas education system in regards to science and the chances that that will change considering there is a fundamentalist Christian in office. If you didn't find i

    • We knew the value of space rocks since antiquity (Score:5, Interesting)

      by Moraelin ( 679338 ) on Wednesday October 18, 2006 @02:40AM (#16481541) Journal
      See, before humans figured out how to smelt iron out of ore, there were weapons made out of meteorite iron. A certain number of meteorites are nearly pure iron, and better yet, some is even already alloyed with stronger metals. They were rare and more expensive than gold, but it was a weapon which could pierce right through a bronze cuirass, and was often credited with magical properties. Kings and nobles paid a small fortune for them.

      Some of the myths around that kind of equipment persisted even after it was known how to just smelt iron ore. E.g., the celtic myths about cold iron against elves. The only iron that can be processed without heating from start to finish is, you guessed, a chunk of stuff that was weapon-grade iron from the start, not ore. That's more often than not a meteorite.

      So other than maybe modern times and construction crews with bulldozers, you wouldn't just throw away such a rock if you found one. You'd sell it to a smith for a small fortune, and he'd make a weapon for a king and sell it for a bigger fortune.

      • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

        by meringuoid ( 568297 )
        See, before humans figured out how to smelt iron out of ore, there were weapons made out of meteorite iron. A certain number of meteorites are nearly pure iron, and better yet, some is even already alloyed with stronger metals. They were rare and more expensive than gold, but it was a weapon which could pierce right through a bronze cuirass, and was often credited with magical properties. Kings and nobles paid a small fortune for them.

        cf: Turin Turambar. You probably wouldn't want to spend too long with t

    • I want a mars witb hookers and blackjack and liqour.. actually, forget the liqour and blackjack. Every traveller? A scientist? I hope nothing
    • I wonder, over the many millions of years that the earth has been around, how many other meteorites of this size or larger have struck ground and subsequently been covered with layers of dirt

      Interestingly enough, most meteors and meteorites are found in the Antarctic. Not because it gets struck more frequently, but rather because of how much easier it is to find them. When you see a (black) rock lying on top of 2 miles of (white) ice, it's a safe bet it fell from the sky.
    • I wonder, over the many millions of years that the earth has been around, how many other meteorites of this size or larger have struck ground and subsequently been covered with layers of dirt

      The entire Earth was formed by small impacts like this, each impact, on average, making the Earth a little larger.

  • Don't let the board of education find out about this.

  • Documentation? (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Asm-Coder ( 929671 ) on Wednesday October 18, 2006 @01:30AM (#16481189)
    The dig was likely the most documented excavation yet of a meteorite find... "We know it is recent," said Carolyn Sumners, director of Astronomy at the Houston Museum of Natural Science, as she surveyed progress on the dig. "Native Americans could have seen it."... The Brenham field was discovered in 1882. Scientists have since traced pieces of the shower as far away as Indian mounds in Ohio, indicating the meteorites were traded as pieces of jewelry and ceremonial artifacts. Certainly the most documented, but, I see a few hundred years of undocumented excavation in spite of that. I hope other excavations do better than that.

  • Some kind of radar-excavator? (Score:4, Insightful)

    by jginspace ( 678908 ) <.jginspace. .at. .yahoo.com.> on Wednesday October 18, 2006 @01:31AM (#16481195) Homepage Journal
    Scientists have unearthed a 154 pound meteorite [CC] from a Kansas field using ground penetrating radar.

    Should have read "located with the help of ground-penetrating radar".

  • actually (Score:4, Informative)

    by oohshiny ( 998054 ) on Wednesday October 18, 2006 @01:36AM (#16481227)
    The largest meteorite found in the US is 15 tons, so 154 pounds isn't all that "massive". What makes this unusual is the fact that it was found using ground penetrating radar, a method that may also be used on Mars.

  • Article Title (Score:1, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Alternate title: "Big rock Found In dirt"

    I'm kidding, of course. It's actually quite nice to see this kind of technology in action O:

    • Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) is much more useful than finding meteorites and looking for water on other planets. Archeologists are using it to non-invasively explore potential and actual dig sites, utilities use it to locate water mains, gas and electrical lines prior to excavation. Geologists are using it to locate anomalies in the ground (caverns, soil stratification), and it is known to be used by militaries to search for and locate foreign underground objects.

      I have used GPRs for my work (environm

  • But they have meteors muscling in on Dorothy's turf. It sounds like a terrifying place to live.
  • It wasn't, perhaps, glowing green?


    There are some villains in the world that would pay handsomely for this... meteorite.

  • Found on A Farm... (Score:3, Funny)

    by Thakandar2 ( 260848 ) on Wednesday October 18, 2006 @02:09AM (#16481387)
    UPDATE: The meteorite found beneath a Kansas family farm was unearthed today. While digging, a pod like container was found with an infant inside. The infant was healthy, as shown when it threw a rattle given toit over 100 yards. The Kents, who own the farm, said they are planning to raise the baby and name it Clark.

    • Re: (Score:1)

      by Jedi86 ( 765527 )
      Glad someone posted it.

    • Re: (Score:2, Funny)

      by krotkruton ( 967718 )
      Umm, if the meteorite is buried, that means Superman is already living on Earth. If the meteor was found burning in a field, it would mean he just arrived. This is a confirmation of the existence of a baby from another planet and a cover-up by a kind-hearted farming couple, not an announcement of such. Damn, at least put a little thought into your comic book reference jokes.
      • This proves Superman was raised by Indians 10,000 years ago (so no, he wouldn't have fought us white men going to America). Wonder what he did back then. Did he help plant many of the religions? Was he still a moral person, or was he a pirate? Did he travel the world, or stay with his tribe? Sounds like a pretty interesting Elseworlds story to me. Although the writers would probably ruin it and have an Indian Lex Luthor discover Kryptonite.

    • Re: (Score:1, Funny)

      by justinlee37 ( 993373 )
      I, for one, welcome our new super-strong extraterrestrial caped-crusading overlord.
  • I've seen this one in the sci-fi channel. Whatever they do to it, DONT TRY TO SEE WHATS INSIDE.
  • I call dibs on the adamantium.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by 246o1 ( 914193 )
      Since it's already solidified, it is impossible to work with. Sorry, but all the adamantium in there is going to be in some bizarre shape like a doctor's signature (not that I have room to talk).

  • Other benefits of GPR (Score:3, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday October 18, 2006 @02:53AM (#16481603)
    GPR is a pretty common geophysical technique. Yes, it can be used to find meteorites, and yes it can (and will) be used for a future Mars rover mission. Such a system is already in development [ucalgary.ca].

    GPR is also used for many other things, like:
    - groundwater contamination
    - finding buried garbage
    - finding voids under roads
    - finding corpses
    - determining stratigraphy of surficial sediments

  • Some background on meteorites (Score:5, Informative)

    by maggard ( 5579 ) <michael@michaelmaggard.com> on Wednesday October 18, 2006 @02:56AM (#16481615) Homepage Journal

    For comparison several tons of meteoric material enters the Earth's atmosphere every day. If you've roof gutters try running a magnet over the accumulated sediment in the bottom of them, much of the metallic material collected thus is likely recently extraterrestrial in origin. This dust is considered an important part of the hydrologic cycle, providing upper-atmosphere nuclii for water to condense around and form raindrops.

    Of meteoric material that reaches the Earth's surface structurally intact (roughly 1cc or larger) there are only about 500 or so objects a year, of which around 1% are recovered for study. The rest are finds of older falls.

    These finds are easiest in plains where they stand out in the soft soil with little other stony material. Another good source is permanent ice & snow fields. In both wind erosion & frost heaving can leave these sitting out on the surface for the collecting. "Dust bowls", when local vegetation dries in a drought up and winds scour the soil away, and the many retreating glacers due to global warming, both yield rich harvests. There are also places where a larger meteor broke up at low altitude and showered the area with a rich concentration of smaller bits.

    Lastly there is an active market in meteorites, for both hobbyist collectors and those who ascribe religious or spiritual aspects to these stones. Unfortunately their collection is typically undocumented, so any possibility of determining their age or circumstance in situ is lost. That they go directly into private hands means that they are generally unavailable for research. Not all meteorites are of great scientific interest, but several rare types do contain important clues to the nature of the early solar system and the current makeup of asteroids & other like objects.

    • If you've roof gutters try running a magnet over the accumulated sediment in the bottom of them, much of the metallic material collected thus is likely recently extraterrestrial in origin.

      Thanks for the tip. I will give it a go.

      Reminds me of my previous house which was on open land, no trees or hills around. One night I stepped out the front door and something really heavy slammed on to the steel roof just above me. The next day I had a look and there was a small rock in the gutter, about the right size t

  • "The most documented excavation" (Score:3, Interesting)

    by njchick ( 611256 ) on Wednesday October 18, 2006 @02:58AM (#16481631) Journal
    The real story is that the radar allowed scientists to know in advance that the meteorite was there, so they were able to study the soil above the meteorite:
    The dig was likely the most documented excavation yet of a meteorite find, with researchers painstakingly using brushes and hand tools to preserve evidence of the impact trail and to date the event of the meteorite strike.
    This allowed to calculate when the impact took place:
    Even before they had the pallasite meteorite out of the ground, the scientific experts at the site were able to debunk prevailing wisdom that the spectacular Brenham meteorite fall occurred 20,000 years ago. Its location in the Pleistocene epoch soil layer puts that date closer to 10,000 years ago.

  • In Kansas ? (Score:2, Funny)

    by Salsaman ( 141471 )
    It can't have been a meteorite then - it must have been a "big rock that God buried there" :-)
  • It took me several scans of the linked website to notice the photo foolishly placed in what is rapidly becoming the de facto column for advertisements.
    Here is a link to the full sized photo for those interested
    http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2006/10/17/meteorite _tec_zoom0.html?category=technology&guid=200610171 10000/ [discovery.com]

    Note to website developers: If you use 'standard' layouts like this, don't bury information in places people have grown accustomed to seeing adverts !
  • "Massive" is a relative term: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoba_meteorite [wikipedia.org], 66 tons. How it failed to make a crater I don't understand.
    • How it failed to make a crater I don't understand.

      Since it landed over 80,000 years ago any crater may have eroded away. The meteorite may well have bounced right out of the crater it made. Lots of similar objects on the moon were found beside, not inside, their craters.

      On Earth natural erosion will flatten a small crater out in a few hundred years.

  • this type of radar may someday be used on Mars to locate water in a future mission

    What the (thin) article doesn't say is how this technology is different from, for example, the Italian MARSIS [esa.int] ground penetrating radar, operating on board of the ESA Mars Express probe since 2004, probing for water down to 5 km under the surface. Or the new Shallow Subsurface Radar [nasa.gov] now being deployed by the NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter probe.

  • Massive, indeed (Score:1, Offtopic)

    by Life700MB ( 930032 )

    At 154 pounds being just 69.85 kilograms (try google "154 pounds in kilos") I find the meteorite less than massive, sorry.

    --
    Superb hosting [tinyurl.com] 200GB Storage, 2_TB_ bandwidth, php, mysql, ssh, $7.95
  • Looks like Canada is gonna have to start selling our water to the 'States and europe.

    First we'll have to stop being the worst water wasters on the planet though.

  • This is where the Haviland Crater [google.com] is. The crater is only .01 Km across so not much to see except circles. The circles are anthropogenic unfortunately.
  • Is that this is one of the first time (or perhaps the first time?) they were able to recover a meteorite this deep, while preserving and studying the soil above it and the track it made in the earth around it. Usually, one finds meteorites when their plow runs into one, causing the impact zone to be disturbed.
  • Look at the upper center of the picture [discovery.com].

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