On Tue, 4 Jul 2006 08:50:53 -0500, "Ken" wrote:

I found an interesting "rock" the other day. OK, OK, I know what you're
thinking . . . another person thinks they've found a meteorite . . .

Actually what sets this "rock" apart from others, and what makes me think
this is indeed a meteorite, is the many spherical structures within the
rock. As you will see if you click on the links below, this "rock" seems to
be broken off from a larger piece. There exists many spherical structures,
which may be chondrules.

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Hi Ken-

I'm afraid there isn't anything in these images to suggest that the
object is a meteorite. There is no evidence of any fusion crust at all,
even very weathered. Even if the stone was somehow broken from the
interior of a larger meteorite, the circular (I wouldn't say spherical
from the images) structures don't look like chondrules. Chondrules are
mineralogically distinct from their surrounding matrix- normally much
harder. So a highly weathered chondrite shows some combination of
hemispherical bumps where chondrules extend above the weathered surface,
and hemispherical depressions where chondrules have fallen out. Your
sample shows circular areas that are coincident with the surrounding
surface, and in some cases appear to wrap around edges. I would guess
that the features are either created by chemical or biological processes
on the surface, or are some sort of mineral inclusions. You could try
filing down into one to determine if they are surface features.

_________________________________________________

Chris L Peterson
Cloudbait Observatory
http://www.cloudbait.com