Strange Stuff That Falls From the Sky

Strange Stuff That Falls From the Sky

Meteorites are not the only things that fall from
the sky.

Leicester couple pelted by raining yellow plastic balls
(A husband and wife have been left puzzled after
hundreds of tiny yellow plastic balls rained in their
garden.) BBC News, August 21, 2012
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leicestershire-19329288

Apocalyptic-like Hail Storm in Texas, CNN News
http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-803013
http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-803056
http://blog.seattlepi.com/hottopics/2012/06/14/huge-hail-crashes-cars-windows-in-dallas/

A man in Dorset has been left mystified after tiny
blue spheres fell from the sky into his garden.
BBC News, January 27, 2012
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-dorset-16754531
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2012/jan/30/blue-marble-mystery-rains-dorset

Blue balls mystery close to being solved (Scientists
rule out possibility that jelly-like marbles that fell
in Dorset garden could be living material)
BBC News, January 31, 2012,
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2012/jan/31/blue-balls-mystery-close-solved

Best wishes,

Paul H.

Undersea Mission to Save Earth from an Asteroid

Undersea Mission to Save Earth from an Asteroid

Motherboard TV: Inside NASA's Spectacular Undersea
Mission to Save Earth from an Asteroid by Alex Pasternack
Motherboard TV, Aug 20, 2012
http://motherboard.vice.com/2012/8/20/motherboard-tv-inside-nasa-s-spectacular-undersea-mission-to-save-earth-from-an-asteroid
http://www.theatlantic.com/video/archive/2012/08/nasas-undersea-mission-to-save-us-from-asteroids/261484/?google_editors_picks=true

Best wishes,

Paul H.

Travels And Trilobites in Geology

Travels And Trilobites in Geology

Travels And Trilobites in Geology by David
Bressan, Scientific American, July 24, 2012
http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/history-of-geology/2012/07/24/travels-trilobites-in-geology/

The article notes that the city of Skryje has in it
Civic Heraldry a trilobite as can be seen at:
http://www.ngw.nl/int/cze/s/skryje.htm

Also, the article notes that there is the
"Restaurante Trilobit" in Prague, Czech
Republic at
http://koprolitos.blogspot.it/2011/02/restaurace-trilobit.html

Best wishes,

Paul H.
--

Dinosaur Tracks Found Near Glen Rose, Texas

Dinosaur Tracks Found Near Glen Rose, Texas

Scientists dig deeper into dino tracks in Glen Rose
by David Schechter, WFAA News, August 21, 2012
http://www.wfaa.com/news/local/Scientist-dig-deeper-into-dino-tracks-in-Glen-Rose-166911036.html

Scientists dig deeper into dino tracks near Fort Worth
by David Schechter, KVUE News, August 21, 2012
http://www.kvue.com/news/state/Scientists-dig-deeper-into-dino-tracks-near-Fort-Worth-167019895.html

Best wishes,

Paul H.
--

Expert rejects meteor claim

Expert rejects meteor claim

In "[meteorite-list] Expert rejects meteor claim" at
http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/meteorite-list/2012-August/086697.html
Scott Schulz wrote:

"On Sat, Aug 18, 2012 at 8:13 PM, Tom Randall wrote:
I guess it didn't go through this morning for some reason.
Try #2! http://bit.ly/S7yPky "

The article, to which Tom refers is:

Expert rejects meteor claim Rocks don't look like real thing
by Robin Booker, Winnipeg Free Press, August 18, 2012
http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/expert-rejects-meteor-claim-166629256.html

Scott added:

"She's just not having much luck with anyone.
Interesting to see an article like that in a paper though :)"

Having an article that follows up a sensation claim of
this type with negative news that the claim likely is
completely bogus is quite unusual and atypical of my
experiences with news media. Like meteorwrongs
being reported as meteorites, news writers are forever
reporting some sensational archaeological find, i.e.
"Atlantis" being found seemingly for the hundredth
time on the flimsiest of evidence and without checking
with any experts. Unfortunately, when problems are
pointed out by experts with such a claim later in the
news cycle, the reporter(s) and whatever paper
published the initial report have either moved on to
other news; consider negative findings of the bogus
claims boring; or both and the negative findings are
never reported. Thus, I personally commend reporter
Robin Booker and the Winnipeg Free Press for
following up on the initial story with an article
about Scott Young's expert opinion.

Best wishes,

Paul H.

OT (Slightly) eBay bans the sale of curses, spells, and hexes.

OT (Slightly) eBay bans the sale of curses, spells, and hexes.

EBay bans sale of spells and hexes by Erin Kim
CNN Money, August 16, 2102, http://money.cnn.com/2012/08/16/technology/ebay-bans-spells/index.html?iid=HP_River

eBay Bans Sales of Spells, Curses, Advice and
Other ‘Intangibles’, Wired, http://www.wired.com/business/2012/08/ebay-bans-intangible-items-including-spells-curses-and-advice/

Anyway, the psychics fight back. :-) :-)

Don't ban our psychics on ebay, Petition
published by Chairity on Aug 11, 2012
http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/dont-ban-our-psychics-on-ebay.html

Best wishes,

Paul H.

Online Volcanology Book

Online Volcanology Book

There is a book about volcanology is available from Massey University for free. It is:

Practical volcanology - Lecture notes for understanding
volcanic rocks from field based studies by Ulrike Martin
and Karoly Nemeth at:

http://muir.massey.ac.nz/handle/10179/532
http://muir.massey.ac.nz/bitstream/handle/10179/532/Nemeth_Martin_PracticalVolcanologyWhole.pdf?sequence=1
http://muir.massey.ac.nz/handle/10179/530

Best wishes,

Paul H.
--

August 4 or 5, 2012 Canadian Meteorite Fall Claimed

August 4 or 5, 2012 Canadian Meteorite Fall Claimed

Possible meteorite touches down here by Stacy Lee,
Medicine Hat News, August 7, 2012,
http://www.medicinehatnews.com/local-news/possible-meteorite-touches-down-here-08082012.html

As with many of such new reports, it is impossible
to know what really happened given the sparse
information given by the article.

Best wishes,

Paul H.

Mars rover snapped picture of rocket stage crash

Mars rover snapped picture of rocket stage crash

The Puff on Mars: Mystery solve by Alan Boyle,
The Cosmic Log, August 10, 2012,
http://cosmiclog.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/08/09/13206213-the-puff-on-mars-mystery-solved

Image at
http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Video/120809/tdy_1_mor_mars1_120808.vembedlarge456.jpg

Curiosity's mysterious Mars photo stirs speculation
Los Angeles Times, August 8, 2012,
http://www.latimes.com/news/science/la-sci-0808-mars-curiosity-photo-crash-20120808,0,4063207,full.story

Mystery over Mars rover Curiosity's photo appears
solved, Los Angeles Times, August 10, 2012
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2012/08/mars-rover-curiositys-mystery-photos-appears-solved.html

NASA says Mars rover took picture of rocket
stage crashing in the distance after touchdown,
the Washington Post, August 10, 2012
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/nasa-mars-rover-took-picture-of-rocket-stage-crashing-in-the-distance-after-touchdown/2012/08/10/f7ae8ef4-e314-11e1-89f7-76e23a982d06_story.html

Best wishes,

Paul H.

More About Icosahedrite (Naturally Occuring Icosahedral Quasicrystal)

More About Icosahedrite (Naturally Occuring Icosahedral Quasicrystal)

Wickham, C., 2012, Nobel prize-winning crystals fell to
earth in meteorites. News Daily, Reuters, August 9, 2012.
http://www.newsdaily.com/stories/bre8781kz-us-nobel-quasicrystals/
and http://www.cnbc.com/id/48601911

The paper mentioned in this article is:

Steinhardt, P. J., and L. Bindi, 2012, In search of natural
quasicrystals. Reports on Progress in Physics. Vol. 75, no. 9.
http://iopscience.iop.org/0034-4885/75/9/092601/article

PDF file at
http://iopscience.iop.org/0034-4885/75/9/092601/pdf/0034-4885_75_9_092601.pdf

Best wishes,

Paul H.

Nobel prize-winning crystals fell to earth in meteorites

Nobel prize-winning crystals fell to earth in meteorites

In "Nobel prize-winning crystals fell to earth in meteorites" at
http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/meteorite-list/2012-August/086549.html
Tom Randall wrote:

" http://www.cnbc.com/id/48601911 "

The paper mentioned in this article is:

Steinhardt, P. J., and L. Bindi, 2012, In search of natural
quasicrystals. Reports on Progress in Physics. Vol. 75, no. 9.
http://iopscience.iop.org/0034-4885/75/9/092601/article

PDF file at
http://iopscience.iop.org/0034-4885/75/9/092601/pdf/0034-4885_75_9_092601.pdf

Another version of this article is:

Wickham, C., 2012, Nobel prize-winning crystals fell to
earth in meteorites. News Daily, Reuters, August 9, 2012.
http://www.newsdaily.com/stories/bre8781kz-us-nobel-quasicrystals/

Best wishes,

Paul H.

Mars peanuts

Mars peanuts

In Re: Mars peanuts at
http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/meteorite-list/2012-August/086485.html
About the Curiosity landing, Paul Gessler wrote,

“I wish someone would have removed the bottle
of peanuts above the altitude control station.”

The bottle of peanuts is part of the Jet Propulsion
Laboratory‘s “peanuts tradition” that they practice
for good luck during a landing. Eating peanuts for
good luck is a practice that began with Ranger 7
and has since continued.

Go see:

Pass the Peanuts: It's Landing Day for NASA's Mars
Rover Curiosity by Robert Z. Pearlman, collectSPACE.com
Augsut 5, 2012.
http://www.space.com/16927-mars-rover-landing-peanuts-tradition.html
http://i.space.com/images/i/20138/original/mars-rover-curiosity-peanuts.jpg?1344187704
http://www.collectspace.com/news/news-080512a.html

Best wishes,

Paul H.

Tycoon turns to mining asteroids

Tycoon turns to mining asteroids

Tycoon turns to mining asteroids by Rupert Neate,
The Sydney Morning Herald, August 1, 2012
http://www.smh.com.au/executive-style/business-travel/tycoon-turns-to-mining-asteroids-20120731-23cn5.html

Best wishes,

Paul H.

Vietnam's murky meteorite market - Meteorite News

Vietnam's murky meteorite market

Vietnam's murky meteorite market (Selling tar and painted
rocks as magical stones from the beyond) by Patrick Winn
Global Post, July 31, 2012 05:26
http://www.globalpost.com/globalpost-blogs/southeast-asia/vietnam-meteorites

Vietnam police busts gang selling fake meteorite chunks
Thanh Nien News, july 29, 2012
http://www.thanhniennews.com/index/pages/20120729-ho-chi-minh-city-busts-gang-of-fake-meteorites.aspx

Man seized for selling fake meteorite for $95,000, Tuoi Tre News.
http://www.tuoitrenews.vn/cmlink/tuoitrenews/society/man-seized-for-selling-fake-meteorite-for-95-000-1.56065

Meteorites or rip-offs? (Feng shui shops in Ho Chi Minh
City are selling unidentified rocks said to be meteorites to
superstitious people who believe they can cure illnesses
and bring good luck. Tuoi Tre News.
http://www.tuoitrenews.vn/cmlink/tuoitrenews/society/meteorites-or-rip-offs-1.14840

Bets wishes,

Paul H.

Different of "Crater" Forms in Assumption Parish, Louisiana

Different of "Crater" Forms in Assumption Parish, Louisiana

For the last several weeks, natural gas has been been
bubbling fairly steadily from Corne Bayou in Assumption
Parish where it overlies the Napoleoville Salt Dome.

1. Could earthquakes be the cause of bubbling bayou?
The Daily Comet, July 19, 2012
http://www.dailycomet.com/article/20120719/ARTICLES/120719571

2. DNR says well not causing Bayou Corne gas bubbles
by David J. Mitchell, the Advocate, July 28, 2012
http://theadvocate.com/home/3448652-125/dnr-officials-say-well-is

Now, a giant sinkhole has formed.

1. Giant sink hole appears in swamp, WAFB, Aug. 3, 2012
http://www.wafb.com/story/19189790/large-area-of-land-collapses-near-bayou-where-bubbles-spotted

2. Bayou Corne evacuation ordered after sinkhole forms,
Daily Comet, Aug. 3, 2012.
http://www.dailycomet.com/article/20120803/HURBLOG/120809853/1223?Title=Bayou-Corne-evacuation-ordered-after-sinkhole-forms

"State Department of Natural Resources officials have
determined that the potential failure of an inactive salt-
mining cavernnear the area, which was closed in 2011,
is likely the cause of the sinkhole and recent bubbling."

3. the earth has turned over upside down -- says
Assumption Parish official about latest development
near Bayou Corne
http://thedailybite.wordpress.com/2012/08/03/the-earth-has-turned-over-upside-down-says-assumption-parish-official-about-latest-development-near-bayou-corne/

4. Evacuations ordered near Assumption sinkhole by
David J.Mitchell, The Advocate, August 3, 2012
http://theadvocate.com/home/3527104-77/large-sinkhole-forms-in-swamps

Yours,

Paul H.

Younger Dryas Impact Hypothesis Discussion Heats Up Again

Younger Dryas Impact Hypothesis Discussion Heats Up Again

The discussion about the Younger Dryas Impact has
heated up again with a flurry of comments in the
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of
the United States of America concerning the paper:

Israde-Alcántara, I., J. L. Bischoff, G. Domínguez-Vázquezc,
H.-C. Li, P. S. DeCarli, T. E. Bunch, J. H. Wittkef, J. C. Weaver,
R. B. Firestone, A. West, J. P. Kennett, C. Mercer, S. Xie,
E. K. Richman, C. R. Kinzie, and w. S. Wolbach, 2012,
Evidence from central Mexico supporting the Younger
Dryas extraterrestrial impact hypothesis. Proceedings
of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States
of America. vol. 109, no. 13, pp. E738-E747
http://www.pnas.org/content/109/13/E738.abstract

The replies, which can be found at
http://www.pnas.org/content/early/recent , are

1. Blaauw, M., V. T. Holliday, J. L. Gill, and K. Nicoll, 2012,
Age models and the Younger Dryas Impact Hypothesis.
PNAS 2012 ; published ahead of print July 24, 2012.

2. Boslough, M., 2012, Inconsistent impact hypotheses
for the Younger Dryas. PNAS 2012 ; published ahead of
print July 24, 2012.

3. Daulton, T. L., 2012, Suspect cubic diamond “impact”
proxy and a suspect lonsdaleite identification. PNAS 2012 ;
published ahead of print July 24, 2012.

4. Gill, J. L. J. L. Blois, S. Goring, J. R. Marlon, P. J. Bartlein,
K. Nicoll, A. C. Scott, and C. Whitlock, 2012, Paleoecological
changes at Lake Cuitzeo were not consistent with an
extraterrestrial impact. PNAS 2012 ; published ahead of
print July 24, 2012.

and 5. Hardiman, M., A. C. Scott, M. E. Collinson, and R. S.
Anderson, 2012, Inconsistent redefining of the carbon
spherule “impact” proxy. PNAS 2012 ; published ahead
of print July 24, 2012.

The reply to the above comments, which is also at
http://www.pnas.org/content/early/recent , is:

Israde-Alcantara, I., J. L. Bischoff, P. S. DeCarli, G.
Domínguez-Vázquez, T. E. Bunch, R. B. Firestone,
J. P. Kennett, and A. West, 2012, Reply to Blaauw et al.,
Boslough, Daulton, Gill et al., and Hardiman et al.:
Younger Dryas impact proxies in Lake Cuitzeo,
Mexico. PNAS 2012 ; published ahead of print July
24, 2012.

A related paper is:

van Hoesel, A., W. Z. Hoek, F. Braadbaart, J. van der Plicht, G. M.
Pennocka, andM. R. Drurya, 2012, Nanodiamonds and wildfire
evidence in the Usselo horizon postdate the Allerød-Younger
Dryas boundary. Proceedings of the National Academy of
Sciences of the United States of America. vol. 109, no. 20,
pp. 7648-7653.
http://www.pnas.org/content/109/20/7648.abstract

Best wishes,

Paul H.

Meteorite Fragments Help Explain How Life Turned Left

Meteorite Fragments Help Explain How Life Turned Left

How Life Turned Left: Meteorite Fragments Help Explain Why
Living Things Only Use Molecules With Specific Orientations
ScienceDaily, July 25, 2012, http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/07/120725120706.htm

Origins of the Building Blocks for Life: Amino Acids and
Chirality by Jamie Elsila, NASA Goddard Space Flight
Center, 2012 Santander Summer School
http://cab.inta-csic.es/uploads/culturacientifica/adjuntos/20120718114202.pdf

NASA Find A Clue To How Life Turned Left by Bill Steigerwald
http://www.nasa.gov/topics/solarsystem/features/life-turned-left.html
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nasa-and-university-researchers-find-a-clue-to-how-life-turned-left-163740676.html

The paper is:

Glavin D. P., J. E. Elsila, A. S. Burton, J. P. Dworkin, R. W.
Hilts and C. D. K. Herd, 2012, Unusual non-terrestrial
L-proteinogenic amino acid excesses in the Tagish Lake
meteorite. Meteoritics & Planetary Science.

Best wishes,

Paul H.

New clues to the early Solar System from diogenites

New clues to the early Solar System from diogenites

New clues to the early Solar System from ancient
meteorites, PhysOrg., July 22, 2012
http://phys.org/news/2012-07-clues-early-solar-ancient-meteorites.html

New Clues to the Early Solar System from Ancient
Meteorites, ScienceDaily, July 22, 2012
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/07/120722135204.htm
http://esciencenews.com/articles/2012/07/22/new.clues.early.solar.system.ancient.meteorites

Ancient diogenite study changes planet solidification
time frame. Examiner.com, July 22, 2012
http://www.examiner.com/article/ancient-diogenite-study-changes-planet-solidification-time-frame

The paper is:
Day, J. M. D., R. J. Walker, L. Qin and D. Rumble III
2012, Late accretion as a natural consequence of
planetary growth. Nature Geoscience. Published
online 22, July 2012, DOI:10.1038/ngeo1527
http://www.nature.com/ngeo/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/ngeo1527.html

Best wishes,
Paul H.

Display of Impact Crater Art (St. Helena Parish, Louisiana)

Display of Impact Crater Art (St. Helena Parish, Louisiana)

There is an exhibit of impact crater art, the Brushy Creek
Crater series" showing at the St Helena Parish (Louisiana)
Tourism Welcome Center on highway 10 from July 12,
2012 through August 30, 2012.
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.411287408908565.82081.183147278389247&type=1

The artist is also selling "Flaming Rock" and "Camouflaged
Crater" T-Shirts based upon her paintings.
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Marshatheartist/183147278389247

Best wishes,

Paul H.

Curiosity Mars Landing on August 6, 2012

Curiosity Mars Landing on August 6, 2012

NASA scientists to feel '7 minutes of terror.'
Now you can too!, Los Angeles Times, July 21, 2012
http://www.latimes.com/news/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-7-seven-minutes-terror-kinect-xbox-game-mars-curiosity-msl-20120720,0,2146775.story

Spacewatch: Curiosity's terrifying arrival at
Mars, The Guardian, July 20, 2012
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2012/jul/20/spacewatch-curiosity-mars-landing

Mars Curiosity Rover Is NASA's Biggest, Most
Advanced Space-Exploration Robot Ever by
Denise Chow, Huffington Post, July 20, 2102
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/20/mars-curiosity-rover-nasa-space-exploration_n_1690301.html

Space News: Curiosity nears daring landing
on Mars by Dr. Tony Phillips, July 21, 2012,
http://www.lakeconews.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=26055:-space-news-curiosity-nears-daring-landing-on-mars&catid=1:latest&Itemid=197

55 Years Ago, Disney Depicted the Curiosity
Rover's Mars Landing With Remarkable Accuracy
Rebecca J. Rosen, The Atlantic, July 19, 2012
http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/07/55-years-ago-disney-depicted-the-curiosity-rovers-mars-landing-with-remarkable-accuracy/259642/

The Robot of the Future That's About to Explore
the Deep Past of Mars by Ross Anderson, The Atlantic
http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/07/the-robot-of-the-future-thats-about-to-explore-the-deep-past-of-mars/258976/

Mars Science Laboratory
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/msl/index.html
http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/mission/

Best wishes,

Paul H.