Thursday, January 22, 2009

The Saskatchewan (Buzzard Coulee) Meteorite


At around 6:26 pm CST November 20 2008 a 10 tonne meteoroid collided with our Earth's atmosphere at 40,000 km an hour creating a fireball so bright it was viewed by thousands of people across the land from British Columbia to Manitoba. This meteoroid with temperatures as hot as the Sun exploded with the force of 300 tonnes of TNT sending thousands of pieces of space debris called meteorites down to Earth over a 20 sq. km area 35 km South of Lloydminster , a place called Buzzard Coulee Saskatchewan.


I now own a piece of this meteoroid thanks to the tireless, selfless efforts of Murray who has been involved with the scientists led by Dr. Alan Hildebrand. Murray is helping with the collection of specimens as well as documenting the fall. Murray has spent countless hours negotiating a price with the local farmers to bring a few pieces to average people like me and you, very refreshing considering the money hungry people out looking to make a profit from these stones.



No I'm not a fanatic, just because I made a shrine for it or gave it the name Boba jr., there is just something about holding a piece of debris from space that makes you feel you are touching something special, and the smell, I've smelt a lot of rocks in my time but this one just smells cool, like space.


Okay, a little tech stuff here. The meteorite is classified as a H 3/4 chondrite meteorite, the H just means it's high in iron content, it will be attracted to a magnet, I have it in my hands sticking to a magnet right now, that's right I am holding it and typing right now, I'm about to smell it again, excuse me,..................., okay I'm back, awesome. Called a chondrite because it contains tiny chondrules. Chondrules are tiny droplets of silicates formed in our early Solar nebula, starting out as tiny molten droplets which cooled and then through accretion by gathering surrounding dust and particles it formed it's parent asteroid. The image above courtesy me, arrows courtesy Murray show these primitive droplets in the meteorite. By studying these chondrules it helps scientist understand how our early Solar system formed, how cool is that?


The image above is a microscopic image of the dark side of my meteorite, or what is called the fusion crust. The fusion crust is the result of the surface of the meteoroid melting due to the extreme temperatures created as it is traveling with great speed through our atmosphere, making a glassy black/blue finish, notice the stress cracks.

They estimate hundreds if not thousands of pieces are still waiting to be recovered. I will be out in the spring either with the scientists or by my self or both looking for some of these treasures and will be documenting my quest with video and pics, stay tuned.

If there is anyone reading this post that has any further information relating to the fall let me know and I will contact Murray and the team with said info.

I'll leave you now with a video of some of the news coverage back in November.

52 comments:

Daisy said...

Wow! That's really an amazing thing to get to own.

Nature Nut /JJ Loch said...

Bob jr looks FANTASTIC, Bob. I'm sooooo EXCITED for you!!!!!

You have the most fun of anyone I know...dream about space and lure it to you. :D

Have a super day.

Hugs, JJ

Ivanhoe said...

That is sooo cool, Bob. And no, you are not a fanatic...at all ;o)
Now go smell Bobo Jr. for me one more time, k? :o)

Anonymous said...

That is so damn cool, Bob! Fascinating stuff! I'm curious, in your shrine, you appear to have your meteorite fragment sitting on a bed of smaller stones or sand. What is it?

I know, weird question.

(By the way, I loved the close-up pictures of the surface). I suspect Brian of The Secret of Newton will be tickled to death with your rock since he's a geologist.

Brian Steele said...

I _am_ tickled to death!!!!

That is outstanding Bob! The closest thing that I have is a "normal" rock that was grabbed for me by a friend when he was in Antarctica on a meteorite collecting expedition.

In Antarctica, all of the rocks on the surface of the ice sheets are meteorites. So to collect them, people just drive around on snow mobiles and look for something black in a field of white.

Oh yeah, and I touched a moon rock at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

To me every rock is special. But some, like yours, are very special.

I look forward to hearing your dispatches as the search continues.

Life is good.

Sherer said...

Wow, very interesting. Imagine one of those babys falls in Canada every five years. Seems like a dangerous place to be! Wouldn't want to be pelted with a desk sized object period.

Chondrules seem very facinating. How do we know that they back to our early solar system? If so - that meteorite has been orbiting around our universe for a very long time it seems!

Jesse

Don said...

I can't believe that you own a piece of that meteorite! Way too cool...

Thanks for sharing with us!

Swubird said...

Bob:

Very cool. I knew you'd find a way to get a piece of that thing. A meteor from space - what a great addition to your astronomy collection.

The video was informative. Thanks for putting it on your blog.

Happy stargazing.

Stephen Cochrane said...

Sweeeeeeet! That's literally one of the coolest things I've heard in a long time. I envy you now.

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks Daisy, it sure is, I'm very happy I got it.\m/\m/

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks JJ. For sure JJ, I have been very lucky to be able to get a piece of history, very cool.\m/\m/

Bob Johnson said...

Lol, thanks Ivanhoe, I'll do just that.\m/\m/

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks Stephanie, nope, no other piece, but guess what, I took my shrine to work and it cracked,:(, so I got a bigger and better one,:), now I will be displaying my Libyan Desert Glass as well, which I will eventually be talking about, it is very cool, clue, King Tut.\m/\m/

Bob Johnson said...

Brian...... I am so jealous, you touched a Moon rock from the Apollo missions!! I have tiny pieces of Moon rock but it would be too cool to touch the originals.

I am looking forward for the hunt come spring and I will be documenting it, hoping I will find a big 17 lb one, then I'll retire, one was going for $240,000 on ebay, the only Buzzard Coulee I've seen there so far.\m/\m/

Bob Johnson said...

Hi Jesse, I have heard of a couple falling in Saskatchewan so far, very rare, and you are right if this would have exploded over a populated area somebody might have got hurt.

They can tell the age due to isotopic dating, same as carbon dating, \m/\m/

Bob Johnson said...

That is too cool,very happy I got me a piece, thanks Don.\m/\m/

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks swubird, I told my wife I'd be getting a piece, probably on Ebay,lol, but I was lucky thanks to Murray and got one earlier then expected.\m/\m/

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks for dropping by Stephen, it is sweet, it now beats my angrite as my fav meteorite just for the simple fact it landed in Saskatchewan.\m/\m/

Ruth said...

A piece of the rock. Whoooaaaa.

Are chondrules like dark chocolate? That why you keep smelling 'em?

The Fool said...

thats really pretty awesome. I've always had an interest in space rocks. Once when I was at the PARI observatory in North Carolina the head honcho let us touch his Mars rock and it was quite the experience, I won't soon forget it.

Anonymous said...

WOW Bob, you lucky guy to have a piece of this marvelous looking meteorite ;) Thank you for the explanation of where it fell down and what is it made from, and great photos too

Anonymous said...

Holy Crap! That UTube video was amazing. I don't think I've every seen meteorite footage like that before.

Bob Johnson said...

Lol Ruth, you'd think so, I took it to work and our office admin licked it, she said she wanted to see if it was salty.

Bob Johnson said...

Hi The Fool, pretty cool you were able to touch a Mars rock.\m/\m/

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks The Fortunes, pretty exciting.\m/\m/

Bob Johnson said...

Hi Grog, there was some excellent footage, right place at the right time.\m/\m/

Anonymous said...

Bob

Truly awesome my friend.
A word of advice? Shrines of inanimate objects are ok, even one named Boba Jr., just as long as you don't start a ritual of sacrificing the neighborhood cats to it LOL
Take care.
~JD

Arie Wijaya said...

That's really Fantastic!....Fly with meteorite....

Bob Johnson said...

Lol, thanks JD, I'll have to remember the cat thing.\m/\m/

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks for dropping by Arie Wijaya.\m/\m/

Anonymous said...

That's nice, more showers and explosions from the sky! Chondrules are fascinating:)

Anonymous said...

Wow! That is something that you won a piece of it. Even someone like me, for whom "Astrostuff" is not a passion can understand why you would make a shrine.

Seriously, does it really smell different? If it does, do you know exactly why?

Anonymous said...

I am jealous! Happy for you to be able to have one for your very own!

Made me smile!tt

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks Priyank, never get enough of these type of explosions, would love one in my backyard,lol.\m/\m/

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks Will, but actually I had to pay for it, got an excellent price though.

It smells like something I have never smelt before, probably the metals in it, best time is after you wrap it up a bit, then let it out of it's container then take a wiff after the fumes have had time to accumulate, hopefully I'm not getting a lethal does of space radiation,lol.\m/\m/

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks Linda, glad the post made you smile a little.\m/\m/

kml said...

The back side is most beautiful and smooth looking. Very cool - and I'm glad you are able to own a piece of it!

Marvin said...

Oooh, very cool! I am jealous. Aren't you altering it, though by exposing it to a magnet? Wouldn't you want to keep it in pristine condition? ;-)))

GagayMD said...

solar eclipse this monday! looking forward to it..happy sunday!

gagay

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks Kathy, I was pretty excited I was able to scoop it up for sure.

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks Marvin, not really, it won't affect it , one of my work employees licked it to see if it was salty, lol, will be keeping it in it's container from now on.

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks GAGAY, you are right, it will be broadcast live all over the net.\m/\m/

Max Coutinho said...

Hello Lord of the Astropics :D!

LOL It is a nice shrine, if you ask me. Boba Jr.? How did you come up with this name? The meteor has a smell? Really?

"I'm about to smell it again, excuse me,..................., okay I'm back, awesome." - LOL LOL LOL awesome! LOL

"By studying these chondrules it helps scientist understand how our early Solar system formed, how cool is that?" - extremely cool.

Oh my God! What a fantastic video!! Wow...I have never witnessed a fall, and this one is quite something (the expert said that it only happens once every 5 years, in Canada, eh? Interesting). Impressive: 1 or 2 metres...wow.

Bob, thanks for another excellent article, man!

Have a superb week!

Cheers

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks Max, my gamming name is Boba,so my pet rock is Boba jr,lol.

Yes it actually has a smell, very cool, and of course it has to have a shrine.

They say they happen every 5 years but this is the first one I know of that you can actually search for pieces, which I will be doing come spring, can hardly wait.\m/\m/

RW said...

Awesome film Bob I am glad ya got a chunck!

Bob Johnson said...

Thanks Roger, pretty happy about the meteorite to say the least.

myonlyphoto said...

Hey Bob I have to call you fanatic, lol, but this jar looks like urn, lol, sorry....

Thanks for the tech stuff, good stuff. Let me get some Matthew's magnets so I can attract some of your meteorites, lol.

Cool stuff Bob!

Anna :)

Bob Johnson said...

Lol Anna, hey that one broke got a fancier smancier one with a light, you are right it looked like a urn,lol.\m/\m/

Ronald said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

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Can I use some of the information from your post right above if I give a link back to your website?

Thanks,
Harry

Kamagra said...

Wery good

Propecia said...

Thank u