[meteorite-list] Meridiani Planum

[Michael Farmer]

WOW, now this is good news. I knew they were going to grind it, but never followed up on it. The first known and named meteorite sitting on the surface of another planet! How cool is that?
Man, I hope we can bring it here some day! It should be at the Smithsonian, what a centerpiece, and iron meteorite collected on Mars.
Mike Farmer

On another Mars note, the newest confirmed Martian meteorite is NWA 2975. A shergottite that is considered to be the freshest hot-desert find known. The main mass is sold, only 2.5 grams remain to be sold, and a small piece is in the Michael Blood auction. 
You may see it on display in my room at the Inn Suites #184 before the new owner takes possession of it.

Mike Farmer
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: batkol 
  To: Meteorite Mailing List 
  Sent: Sunday, January 01, 2006 4:16 PM
  Subject: [meteorite-list] Meridiani Planum


   i thought this was pretty cool.  wonder if it will ever be available for Terran collectors.  happy new year
  susan
        Meridiani Planum 
        Information about the name Name: Meridiani Planum
        This is an OFFICIAL meteorite name.
        There is no official abbreviation for this meteorite.  
        Information from the NHM Catalogue: This meteorite is not listed in the Catalogue 
        Information from MetBase: This meteorite is not listed in MetBase 
        Information from the Nomenclature Committee: This meteorite was not observed to fall.
        Classification: IAB
        Year of find: 2005
        Planet of origin: Mars
        Latitude: -1.94617; Longitude: 354.473
       
        References: Published in Meteoritical Bulletin, no. 90, MAPS 41, in preparation (2006)
        Find references in NASA ADS  
        Comments: New, 10 Oct 2005 
        Writeup,
        from MB 90: Meridiani Planum 

        MER landing site, Meridiani Planum, Mars

        Found 2005 January 5

        Iron (IAB)

        While exploring the remnants of the heat shield on the plains of Meridiani Planum during the Mars Exploration Rovers (MER) mission the surroundings were documented by the Panoramic camera (PanCam) of rover Opportunity. On sol 324 a close-by object with a maximum dimension of 31 cm across became for the first time clearly visible in one of these images. Subsequent PanCam images reveal a smooth rock surface covered by depressions partly reminiscent of regmaglypts. Classification and description (Athena Science Team): Spectra obtained by the Miniature Thermal Emission spectrometer on sol 339 and 342 show a thermal emissivity of 0.35, which is only consistent with metal indicating that the object was an iron meteorite. Detailed investigations from sol 349 to 352 by the in-situ instruments on the rover's arm, the Rock Abrasion Tool (RAT), Microscopic Imager (MI), Mössbauer Spectrometer (MB) and Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS), confirmed the metallic nature and allowed classification. Classification based on analyses of a brushed surface: MB, ~ 94 % of the Fe is bound in kamacite, and APXS, dust corrected composition of iron is ~7 wt. % Ni, ~300 ppm Ge, and <70 ppm Ga consistent with its classification as IAB iron. Specimens: type specimen and main mass, Mars.
       
        Synonyms: Heat Shield Rock (MB90)
       


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