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Old July 7th 03, 08:43 PM
Ron Miller
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Default another what if?


"Zdenek Jizba" wrote in message
...


On Eros there is no atmosphere, no wind
no erosion short of occasional impacts by objects creating craters.
Explaining some of the objects seen on images of Eros becomes more
difficult.


There doesn't appear yet to be anything to explain. You seem to be a little
ambivalent about the "strangeness" of the rocks. I'll copy part of our
earlier correspondence below. You will recall that I criticized your use of
so many qualifiers. Not only is the "mysteriousness" of the boulders utterly
subjective, but you don't seem to be very sure yourself of just how strange.
You've done nothing at all to suggest that they are anything other than
ordinary boulders.

I agree with you that I cannot absolutely prove that they are not rocks.
However, there are several aspects of these objects that make them
VERY unusual. Fist the mounds.
1. they appear to be circular (the image that disappeared showed this
best)
2. They have no sharp edges (unlike most of the other boulders on

Eros)
3. There appears to be an overhang around the circular boundary
(again, this showed better on the disappeared image)
4. The slopes appear to be those of a knoll.


You use the word "appear" in three of your four points and "most of" in the
fourth. This all awfully subjective. What you are saying is: "Because these
objects 'appear' to be different from 'most of' the other rocks and
boulders, they must be artificial." This is quite a leap from such little
evidence.

As to the object with a sharp peak,

1. The aspect ratio (height divided by base radius) appears to be
too high. Its emplacement would have to have been from a
vertical impact. Otherwise I would expect it to fall on its

side.
2. The shape is quite unusual sort of like an off center pyramid


Again, a lot of subjectivity: "appears to be", "I would expect", "would have
been" . . . (and why would an "off center pyramid" be "quite unusual"?
Nature is full of examples of approximations. "Quite unusual" would, I
think, be a mathematically perfect pyramid, if anything).

I hope this may explain to you my inability to accept them a
natural objects.


No, it doesn't.