[meteorite-list] Unclassified NWAs: What's the attraction?

[Bob Loeffler]

Hi all,

Thanks for the heart-felt replies to my query.  I knew my question would
evoke the true feelings of collectors out there.  :-)  Even though I need
some classification in my life (and in my collections), I do see all of your
points.  And no, I don't do Beanie Babies and Pokemon.  :-)  I have a
mineral collection and now a meteorite collection (and used to have a coin
collection when I was a kid), so I do like specific items.  My girlfriend
and I will be digging for topaz or aquamarine crystals in Colorado and I'm
just looking for good crystalline specimens, while my girlfriend will pick
up a chunk of granite and think it's cool (although she also likes the
crystalline specimens).  Everyone is different and that's what makes us
individuals (like meteorites).

Thanks again for sharing your opinions and thoughts about unclassified NWAs.
I really do appreciate it.

Regards,

Bob


-----Original Message-----
From: meteorite-list-bounces at meteoritecentral.com
[mailto:meteorite-list-bounces at meteoritecentral.com] On Behalf Of
bernd.pauli at paulinet.de
Sent: Saturday, January 12, 2008 11:56 AM
To: Meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
Subject: [meteorite-list] Unclassified NWAs: What's the attraction?

Tom wrote:

WOW! I can't remain silent.  MOST of us are interested in the  rocks, you 
know the material that came from out of this world. I've heard  it said "
There is no such thing as an ordinary chondrite" and that applies to all
rocks from space.


NORTON O.R. (2001) Ugly Ducklings of the desert
(Meteorite Mag., August 2001, Vol. 7-3, pp. 22-23):

None of the meteorites had fusion crusts. Most were severely fractured, some
broken
in pieces along fracture lines allowing for the entrance of terrestrial
contaminants. The
interiors were stained brown from iron oxide. But I kept telling myself that
it didn't
matter their condition. These "ugly ducklings" are, after all, real
meteorites...Off they
went to the thin section maker. When they returned and I had my first look
at their
interiors my "Ho hum, just another Sahara OC" attitude changed.  Like the
story of the
ugly duckling, within the few months of grinding and polishing, a
transfiguration had
taken place. These "ordinary" chondrites were every bit as beautiful and
exciting as
any chondrites I have examined through the years. I was moved by the fact
that I was
the first to peer into the interiors of these asteroid chps. Wonderful
discoveries abound
in these sections. The textural variations are so great that the explorer is
guaranteed
to see structures never before seen by anyone. Herein lies the beauty of
these "ugly
ducklings".


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