I have been involved in science for most of my life and have followed =
with great interest the discovery of meteorites from Mars which =
apparently contain the remnants of life.=20
In the mid 1970's, I found a meteorite on a ranch that I worked on after =
graduating from college. The daily routine of the ranch was to make =
exactly the same rounds every day. The meteorite landed in a grassy =
field that contained no rocks whatsoever. My aunt and I saw the =
meteorite from almost a mile away and it was obvious that it had not =
been there before. Many people in a near by town reported seeing a =
meteor the night before.
This meteorite is about the size of a basketball, is obviously volcanic =
in origin and is a very delicate piece of material. The meteorite is =
rounded from its entry into the Earth's atmosphere and clearly shows =
melted areas where material was removed during its flight through the =
atmosphere. I have downloaded a picture of the meteorite QUE94201 and =
ALHA77005 and my meteorite is very similar in appearance but not as dark =
as QUE. I believe my meteorite represents material that was ejected =
shortly after it was made. You can actually break off small pieces with =
your fingernail alone.
When I first discovered this meteorite, I originally thought it was from =
Mars, because it was obviously volcanic and I reasoned that Mars would =
be the most likely candidate. I originally thought the material might =
have been ejected directly from a volcano on Mars, but later read of the =
theory that meteoroid collisions on Mars may be responsible for giving =
Martian material escape velocity.
I am very much interested in having my meteorite tested to determine if =
it actually came from Mars. Can you tell me where to send a sample? If =
you can be of any help to me, I would very much appreciate it.
Thank you in advance.
Mike Moore