[meteorite-list] Free meteorites

[MexicoDoug at aol.com]

Nice to know you anyone can collect real meteorites in your back yard for 
free (see below).  Now until Sunday is a great time to collect some Bootids!  I 
wonder, though if the magnetism of the cometary parent bodies is enough to be 
magnetic.  Maybe they are a mix ejected micrometeorites that previously 
impacted the comet?  Also, at the speeds the particles fall, do they really reach the 
surface during the showers or is there a significant gap for most?

Also, if one is somehow able to classify a grain of dust so collected and 
send in a half a particle for curation, would it be allowed to be a named 
meteorite?  Does the size matter to the Met-Soc, or do they only care how well you 
classify it?

Saludos

http://www.kyes-world.com/micrometeorites.htm

Collecting Micro-Meteorites;

The tiniest members of our solar system are very small metallic or rocky 
particles. They are only a few microns in diameter (a micron is .00001 cm). It is 
estimated that up to 100 tons of micrometeorites enter the earth's atmosphere 
every day. For the most part, they are too small to burn up in Earth's 
atmosphere like their larger siblings, meteors do. They just float gently down until 
they reach the surface of our planet! 
More micrometeorites are found in the atmosphere after a meteor shower. The 
particles' light weight sometimes keep them suspended in the air until they are 
washed out by rain or snow. They can be collected from the rain or snow 
because they usually have some traces of iron in them, causing them to be attracted 
to a magnet. Try to collect rain water before and after a major meteor 
shower. That way you will be able to measure the increase caused by the shower! This 
is what you do;
 
Materials Needed:

Bucket or pan to collect rain water in, lined with a plastic bag
2 or 3 cups of distilled water
Magnet inside a plastic bag
Magnetized needle
Magnifying glass
Microscope with about 100X magnification
Microscope slides
LOTS of patience !!!
What to do:

 Have a bucket or pan ready to put out in an open area when it rains. (Wider 
is Better!) Your meteor collecting pan needs to be lined with a VERY CLEAN 
(new) heavy plastic bag. This is because you don't want to accidentally start out 
with any metallic remnants that were here on Earth all along! Place the pan 
in an open area, where the rain will fall in without first bouncing off of 
anything like buildings or trees. 
 Try to plan to catch one rain water sample before the meteor shower and 
another the first time it rains after the meteor shower.
 Next make your meteorite collector. This is a magnet (the strongest one you 
can find is best), inside a plastic bag. Slowly sweep the bottom of the pan 
with the collector. Because the metallic meteorites have iron in them they will 
be attracted to the magnet. You have it in the bag so that - (1) you won't 
mistake pieces of metal already on the magnet for your little micrometeorites and 
(2) you don't want to loose them when they want to stay stuck to the magnet.
They will be REALLY - REALLY SMALL so don't get discouraged if it looks like 
there is nothing there! 
Now put the magnet (still in the bag) gently into a pot (lined with heavy 
aluminum foil) of distilled water. (Don't use more distilled water than you need. 
You will have to boil it off later.) Remove the magnet without exposing it to 
the water. The particles will fall off when you swirl the bag in the water. 
 Re-sweep the rain water several times in this way, adding the sweepings to 
the same pan of distilled water. Take your time when you do this part, holding 
the bag snug against the magnet so you don't knock pieces off that you have 
swept up. 
 Now you need to remove the water. This may be done by boiling it in the 
aluminum-lined pan. Always have an adult supervise this step !!!
 When the remaining particles are dry remove them with a magnetized needle. 
(A needle may be magnetized by rubbing it on a magnet several times in the same 
direction.) Put them on a slide and look at them under a microscope. A 100X 
microscope is necessary to examine some particles, but a magnifying glass is 
enough for the larger ones. 
 The particles collected before the shower are your control group. Although 
some of these may be meteorites it is likely that most are from industrial 
waste. By comparing them with the group taken after the shower you can more easily 
sort out the ones that look different than the first batch. Like their larger 
cousins, it is often a guessing game unless you have a chemical analysis 
done, which I sure don't know how to do! Generally, though, they may have burned 
or melted-looking parts. They are often clumpy-looking, like Rocky Road ice 
cream. There also may be crystalline structures.
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