Finding Rocks That Fall From Outer Space

--- Antarctic meteorites provide a continuous and readily available supply of extraterrestrial materials, stimulating new research and ideas in cosmochemistry, planetary geology, astronomy, and astrobiology. Written by Linda M.V. Martel Hawai'i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology Annual collections of meteorites from Antarctica are a steady source of new non-microscopic extraterrestrial material including lunar and Martian samples and rare and unusual flotsam from asteroids. This article summarizes research on new kinds of Antarctic meteorites that is not simply changing how meteorites are classified but causing a revolution in our knowledge of the materials and processes in the solar nebula, our solar system, and the formation of asteroids, planets, and ultimately our world. When the 2001-2002 Antarctic Search for Meteorites (ANSMET) field party begins scouting for meteorites on the ice this season, we will be continuing a 25-year tradition of exploration along the Transantarctic Mountains. As a new ANSMET meteorite hunter, I will report to PSRD on this season's search and recovery of specimens and how studies of Antarctic meteorites are unraveling the secrets of solar system formation. Reference: U. S. Antarctic Search for Meteorites program