No, it's NOT cheese

General astronomy-related discussion (publicly viewable)
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AstroGeek
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No, it's NOT cheese

Unread post by AstroGeek »

~

"I LOVE YOU TO THE MOON AND BACK" seems to lose some of its romance when you actually hold a piece of the moon in your hand.

I recently obtained this certified piece of feldspathic breccia. It is a lunar meteorite. These are found on earth after being ejected from the lunar surface during an asteroid strike, millions of years ago. This debris enters orbit around the sun or earth until eventually falling to the earth's gravity. This sample's unique mineralogy could only be created in an environment of low gravity and no water. And it matches the composition profile of rocks returned from the moon.

The price?
Well, I can tell you that it was way lower in cost than ANY of the Apollo missions.

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Steve L
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Pete
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Re: No, it's NOT cheese

Unread post by Pete »

I'm very sorry Steve, but that piece of rock is a fake. In 1966 I worked on the Lunar Orbiter program. It was pretty hush hush at the time but we were putting cameras of remarkable resolution into spacecraft. And here's the result:
moon is cheese LUnar Orbitor 1966.jpg
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Bruce D
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Re: No, it's NOT cheese

Unread post by Bruce D »

So funny!
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Paul D
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Re: No, it's NOT cheese

Unread post by Paul D »

Steve,

Very nice slice of lunar rock you have there. Glad you got a COA with it. I always tell those who are interested in buying meteorites to always do back ground checks and make sure that they are registered members of International Meteorite society. Here is a detailed write up about your particular meteorite. https://www.lpi.usra.edu/meteor/metbull ... code=66173

I have been collecting meteorites for years and it has become an addictive hobby for me and I have a few pieces of lunar rock. What really struck me about one of my pieces is that on one of the lunar missions an astronaut said he saw orange on the rocks and my second photo you can see the orange he described. I don't have any lunar slices (yet) but I have always liked the meteorites that showed a fusion crust that can be seen on my first picture.


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AstroGeek
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Re: No, it's NOT cheese

Unread post by AstroGeek »

Hi Paul,

Interesting analysis, on your part. Yes, I try to be very cautious when buying 'space rocks' on-line. I can clearly see the orange color in your sample that you mention. My lunar slice is very thin, but I CAN see specks of orange along the rim edge. Quite interesting, as you pointed out. Have you ever seen lunar images where the color saturation is cranked up and the orange and blue tinges are exposed?

I just love this hobby. And enjoy your holidays!!

AstroGeek
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mrgizmo65
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Re: No, it's NOT cheese

Unread post by mrgizmo65 »

Steve, after reading the whole thread ,I couldn't help but look back a few year to Pete's assessment as to the origin of your piece of the moon and it's authenticity. I know NASA was all secretive and hush hush back then but they did keep it secret that the moon was infested with mice!! Thanks Pete, for the humor it makes for great fun. Jerry :mrgreen:
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