March 2017 MMGM Newsletter

99 Main Street • Bethel, Maine • mainemineralmuseum.org • (207) 824-3036

From the Director’s Desk— Lecture By Barbra Barrett, MMGM Director Most people are fascinated by a brilliantly starlit sky or bemused when they see a shooting star or better yet a . Those fleeting trails of light caused by small particles burning up high in the atmosphere dazzle the child in all of us. Even more phenomenal, larger space debris sometimes falls to earth creating a magnificent glow during its rapid descent. Recovered fragments from these events are . MMGM will host two special events in April focusing on these extraordinary and educational rocks from space.

Last May a very bright fireball was observed over Maine telescopes can observe new Solar Systems forming today most likely resulting in a north of Rangeley and based on the information from the meteorites we Lake. Unfortunately, the meteorite was never found, hope to find new Solar Systems that resemble our own. despite a considerable effort to locate it. Meteorites contain Meteorites bring us closer to understanding the origin of our material from the birth of our Solar System and are used solar system as well as life on our own planet. to understand how and when it formed. These meteorites Henning Haack received his PhD in Geophysics from aid us in finding out which types of stars delivered material the University of Copenhagen, and did postdoc work at to our Solar System. The latest generation of astronomical the Planetary Geosciences division at the University of (continued page 2)

1 Hawaii and at the Institute of Physics zoom out to space to see where these in Odense. He has served as an unique rocks originated. There will be CALENDAR AT THE MUSEUM AND MORE... Associate Research Professor at the an opportunity to see a selection of Danish Center for Remote Sensing and spectacular meteorites – the rocks that Maine Mineralogical & Geologi- curator for the Geological Museum at document the birth and early evolution cal Society’s 34th Annual Gem, the University of Copenhagen. He has of our Solar System. For tickets and Mineral & Jewelry Show searched for meteorites in numerous more information please visit https:// April 1-2, 2017 locations including the Antarctica, astro.umaine.edu/events/science- Saint Joseph’s College, Cape York, and the blue ice fields in lecture-series. Standish, ME Greenland. He has received a number Emera Astronomy Center of honors including the University of Henning will also be presenting his Science Lecture Series Copenhagen’s Gold Medal, The United lecture at the Museum as part of our April 6, 2017 • 7:00 PM States Congress Antarctic Service Third Thursday Talks on April 20th Meteorites and the Origin of the Medal, and has an named in at 7:00PM. We will open the doors Solar System his honor (Asteroid 7005 –Henning at 6:00PM for a special social hour Dr. Henning Haack – MMGM’s Research Associate Haack). He currently is an Associate and sneak peek at some of MMGM’s Emera Astronomy Center Researcher at the Maine Mineral and premiere meteorite collection. We hope 167 Rangeley Rd Gem Museum in Bethel and teaches at that you will join us for one of these Orono, Maine 04469 Science Talents in Denmark. memorable events. On April 6th at 7:00 PM, Henning will be the guest science lecture series Warmly, MMGM Tours & Talks April 20, 2017 speaker the at University of Maine’s 6:00 PM Social & Emera Astronomy Center in Orono. Collection Preview The lecture will take place in the Barbra 7:00 PM Lecture planetarium under the stars and allow Talk: Meteorites – Dr. Henning participants a special opportunity to Haack, Research Associate Maine Mineral & Gem Museum

Collections—Meteorites 44th Rochester By Carl Francis, Curator Mineralogical Symposium Collections, if they April 20th – 24th, 2017 April 21, 2017 - Technical Session are any good, - Contributed Papers in are the product of Specimen Mineralogy personal passion 1:00-5:00 PM – Dr. Carl Francis, regardless of Curator MMGM whether they are Annual MMGM Mineralogical private collections Heritage Awards Banquet or museum May 12, 2017 • 4:30-6:45 PM collections. MMGM Tickets: $30 per person co-founder Larry Stifler is a passionate To register go to: collector of meteorites—those rare www.mainemineralmuseum. rocks that have fallen from space. He org/join-us/heritage-award- fell in love with the , which banquet-2017 are stony -metallic - with New England inclusions of (or peridot, the Mineral Conference August birthstone). If a is cut May 12th – 14th, 2017 into a thin slice the transmit Grand Summit Hotel – Sunday light and they look something like a River Resort, Newry, ME www.nemineralconference.org

2 stained glass window. In order to share his meteorites with She is as excited about showing meteorites to visitors the public and to make MMGM an even more unique and as Larry. Barbra is involved in every aspect of curating attractive destination, Larry decided to install his collection the Stifler collection and planning for its exhibition. Her in the museum. They will occupy the second floor of the administrative assistant Chrys Snogren is equally involved new building above the museum’s gift shop. One will have maintaining specimen documentation and overseeing their to go to New York City to see anything comparable. storage. Meteorites will not just be displayed here; they will Meteorites arrive frequently at the museum and require occupy the largest gallery space and be a major attraction curation. Director Barbra Barrett has taken on this and educational resource. responsibility and in doing so discovered a new passion.

Events—Third Thursday Talks Resume By Annemarie Saunders, MMGM Staff Spring is here! To celebrate we The 2nd Annual MMGM Mineralogical Heritage Awards are queuing up for some great Banquet takes place on May 12 in conjunction with the MMGM events. We will kick April New England Mineral Conference being held at the Grand off by participating at the Maine Summit Hotel at the Sunday River Resort in Newry, ME. Mineralogical and Geological Society’s Tickets are $30.00 per person by advanced registration Gem and Mineral show at St. Joseph’s only and can be purchased on our website: www. College in Standish. MMGM’s visiting mainemineralmuseum.org/join-us/heritage-award- Research Associate, Dr. Henning banquet-2017. If you have any questions, please contact Haack will be the guest lecturer at the Annemarie at [email protected] or Emera Astronomy Center for their Science Lecture Series at 207.824.3036. For NEMC registration please visit their on April 6th at the University of Maine in Orono. Our Third page at www.nemineralconference.org. Thursday Talks will resume on April 20th with a repeat performance of Henning’s talk for those who miss the Our preview gallery is open Monday – Saturday 10:00 event in Orono. MMGM’s curator, Dr. Carl Francis will be am – 5:00 pm and can be accessed through the Museum speaking at the Rochester (NY) Mineralogical Symposium Store. Stop in for a sneak peek of minerals and meteorites on April 21 from 1:00-5:00 pm. Registration information for in MMGM’s collection and check out exciting new jewelry this event can be found at www.rasny.org. designs in the store.

3 Treasures–Meteorite Jewelry By Maggie Kroenke, MMGM Staff Are you looking for a truly out of this Most meteorites fall world gift? Our selection of jewelry unobserved, but not Sikhote- featuring meteorites from around the Alin. Its fall in eastern world should do the trick! Choose in 1947 was spectacular from: from Argentina, and created more than one from Namibia, hundred small craters. Most of from and or the pieces are set in sterling Sikhote-Alin, from Russia. silver, but a few were created with yellow gold. A large portion of our jewelry features the Muonionalusta that was found in 1906 in one of Sweden’s The most striking pieces are those made with slices of most northern counties. The pattern of very fine, Seymchan. They show the transparent crystals of peridot intersecting lines, called that define the pallasite class of meteorites. Seymchan Widmanstatten pattern, is was found in a Russian riverbed in 1967. Sometimes those a characteristic feature of peridot crystals can be cut into gemstones. Come take a Muonionalusta brought out by look at our large selection of meteorite jewelry from T & etching the slices with nitric M Stones, Brian Quigley and stay tuned for new pieces acid. This pattern forms as of jewelry by Maine jewelry designer Christine Peters the iron cooled in the core featuring these gorgeous little gems. of an asteroid over millions Hours: Monday through Saturday 10:00 am to 5:00 pm. of years and cannot be www.mainemineralmuseum.org replicated in a laboratory.

Science–Closer Look At Meteorites By Al Falster, Skip Simmons & Karen Webber, MP2 Research Group The MMGM laboratory is primarily was submitted with just such cutting torch marks. That focused studying on the origin sample also bore an imprinted number, which is generally of granitic pegmatites and their accepted as indicative of the man-made nature of such a minerals but we occasionally find! get submissions of suspected meteorites. Unfortunately, none of Other suspected meteorites turned out to be various natural the samples submitted so far has rocks: non-vesicular basalt, greenstone, scoria, gabbro and turned out to be a meteorite. Many iron-stained limestone. are magnetic, but a lot of natural rock samples exhibit magnetism due to the presence of magnetite or pyrrhotite. Meteorite identification is challenging because meteorites Man-made chunks of metal commonly masquerade as are so variable in their character and appearence. meteorites. Some mimic nickel-iron meteorites quite well. Some are metallic, others are stony. Mixed groups also Chemical tests are needed in such cases. The samples exist. Fusion crust on stony meteorites is generally we received proved to be manganese-iron alloys, chrome- good evidence, but this can be sometimes confused with vanadium steel and high carbon cast iron. Some of the deposits of manganese oxide minerals as is commonly samples submitted showed areas where a cutting torch seen in ‘desert varnish’. Regmaglypts, which are was used to trim the piece off which can give a sample a thumbprint-like depressions over the surface, are a good meteorite-like appearance. Some years ago, when we indicator for iron meteorites. Final verification is always were at the University of New Orleans, a piece of metal obtained in the lab. 4 Below are some recent images obtained in our laboratory. SEM images of an authentic meteorite, a rare type of , a Bencubbin-like meteorite from Gujba, Yobe, Nigeria.

Fig 1. A backscattered electron Fig. 2. An X-ray map of Figure Fig. 3. An X-ray map of the same image of the Bencubbin-like 1 with iron shown in green and area as in the other two images meteorite Gujba shows a partially oxygen in red. Clearly, the orange/ with magnesium shown in blue and oxidized mass of nickel-iron (spot 8 greenish area is where oxidized iron calcium in orange. The blue reveals is the fresh metal, spots 6 and 7 are compounds are present! olivine and orange reveals plagioclase oxidized portions. Small masses of feldspar. , an iron sulfide are shown for example in spot 5.

Dig Becomein! a Member! Contact us for a membership form or join online at www.mainemineralmuseum.org. For sponsorship and funding opportunities, call us, 207.824.3036.

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