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Kind of a fun story....
When I was about 10 years old, I was on a hike with my siblings and uncle when I came across an unusual rock. I found it along a creek bed and when I dug it out it was very unusual looking.
It is kind of oval shaped (like a turtle shell) and looks like it is broken in half right across the diameter. The color is a light grey mineral type composition and has little slivers of what looks to me like white quartz like material.
I remember showing it to my uncle who thought I might have stumbled across a meteorite. I didn't think much of it at the time other than it was a cool find and decided to hold onto it.
The other day I was watching a show and had a snippet about a town in Ohio that rained meteorites one night and people are picking them up and selling them for big money. There was a geologist on the show who explained a few things to look for in a meteorite.
One thing was magnetism. He said normal rocks just found sitting out in the open don't have magnetic qualities. Being curious, I pulled the rock out and held and magnet up to it and sure enough I can tell it has something magnetic in it...not real strong but enough that it pulls on the magnet a bit. The other thing mentioned was that meteors tend to feel heavier than the actual size of the rock itself. I haven't taken a weight and compared it to its dimensions but it definitely feels heavier than what I would expect a rock of that size to weigh. The weird almost smooth spherical shape also makes it odd looking.
Does anyone have any suggestions on who I might contact to determine whether or not I really do have a meteorite. There has been a part of me that never really wanted to know because I always thought it was a cool find and just wanted to let it sit and remain a mystery. Then I got concerned when I learned that some meteorites might have radioactive properties so maybe not safe to be sitting around my house. Also, I had no idea that if it is one, it might be worth some serious dough. Looking at what was being paid for some of the meteorites I saw on the show, this one might be worth $15-$30K if it is the real deal.
I would appreciate any advice.
When I was about 10 years old, I was on a hike with my siblings and uncle when I came across an unusual rock. I found it along a creek bed and when I dug it out it was very unusual looking.
It is kind of oval shaped (like a turtle shell) and looks like it is broken in half right across the diameter. The color is a light grey mineral type composition and has little slivers of what looks to me like white quartz like material.
I remember showing it to my uncle who thought I might have stumbled across a meteorite. I didn't think much of it at the time other than it was a cool find and decided to hold onto it.
The other day I was watching a show and had a snippet about a town in Ohio that rained meteorites one night and people are picking them up and selling them for big money. There was a geologist on the show who explained a few things to look for in a meteorite.
One thing was magnetism. He said normal rocks just found sitting out in the open don't have magnetic qualities. Being curious, I pulled the rock out and held and magnet up to it and sure enough I can tell it has something magnetic in it...not real strong but enough that it pulls on the magnet a bit. The other thing mentioned was that meteors tend to feel heavier than the actual size of the rock itself. I haven't taken a weight and compared it to its dimensions but it definitely feels heavier than what I would expect a rock of that size to weigh. The weird almost smooth spherical shape also makes it odd looking.
Does anyone have any suggestions on who I might contact to determine whether or not I really do have a meteorite. There has been a part of me that never really wanted to know because I always thought it was a cool find and just wanted to let it sit and remain a mystery. Then I got concerned when I learned that some meteorites might have radioactive properties so maybe not safe to be sitting around my house. Also, I had no idea that if it is one, it might be worth some serious dough. Looking at what was being paid for some of the meteorites I saw on the show, this one might be worth $15-$30K if it is the real deal.
I would appreciate any advice.
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