Mike's Astro Photos

Mason Dixon Meteor

Sep.16 2009

Strange Rock Reports

by , under Mason Dixon Meteor

I’ve gotten about six strange rock reports so far which is great! It shows the locals know meteorites could be on the ground and they are keeping an eye out for them. I have been able to identify most of the rocks I’ve seen so far, but this one in particular I’m not sure about. If anyone knows what this rock is please let me know.

Strange Rock

Strange Rock

Strange Rock

Strange Rock

Strange Rock

Strange Rock

Strange Rock

Strange Rock

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Sep.12 2009

Meteor Postcards

by , under Mason Dixon Meteor

I plan on sending out close to 2,000 of these post cards next week to property owners with 10 or more acres in the 6 zip codes that include and surround the Lancaster County search area. Within the last few days I have started to get more meteorite found reports. The leads that I have followed up with so far have turned out to be slag. To a meteorite novice, slag really does look like a meteorite or what you would think a meteorite would look like if you had never seen one before. Slag is black, often magnetic and burnt. It is easy to mistakenly think a piece of slag could be a meteorite.

With this post card I hope to 1) Raise awareness and excitement with a broad number of residents that extend beyond our refined search area. 2) Give the residents an informational and visual guide to help them identify a meteorite 3) Let them know about slag and how to identify it.

Here is the front of the card:

Meteor Postcard Front

Meteor Postcard Front

Here is the back of the card:

Meteor Postcard Back

Meteor Postcard Back

I plan on sending this out next Tuesday or Wednesday. Please let me know if you have any comments or suggestions before these hit the mail.

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Sep.09 2009

Great Lead – Dead End?

by , under Mason Dixon Meteor

Dented Roof In New Holland

Dented Roof In New Holland

As I reported earlier, I recently got a great lead from a woman in New Holland named Jeane (pronounced with the e, think I Dream of…). Jeane couldn’t sleep the morning of July 6th and was watching Ghost Hunters when she heard a very loud crashing noise right outside her bedroom window. The next morning she looked outside her window and noticed a large dent in her metal porch roof. Everything about the initial report sounded very promising and was and still is the best lead I have gotten since the meteorite search started. New Holland is not in our current focus area, but it is within the greater impact zone. The specific house is approximately 1/2 miles south of the geometric impact point.  A meteorite found in this location is totally plausible and would support all of the data we are working with.

Dislodged and Broken Fascia Board

Dislodged and Broken Fascia Board

I went out to her house last Thursday, examined the damage, took some pictures and looked around her property but did not find any meteorites. I did notice the obvious big dent in the corrugated steel roof and what looked like black roofing tar splattered in the same location as the dent, (but no where else on the patio roof).  With my head out the window I turned my body around, looked up and noticed the fascia board was cracked and dislodged from the house. The cracked fascia board was about one foot to the left of the dent in the patio roof.  Jeane said she definitely would have noticed the dent before and when I looked at it from the underside of the porch I believed her. This would be a hard thing to miss. She also stated that she looked outside the window that morning because she had heard the noise the night before and it sounded like something had hit the porch roof.

Dog Hole Where Meteorite Should Be

Dog Hole Where Meteorite Should Be

After examining the roof from the upstairs I went to the backyard and looked around. At the end of the porch, aligned with the dent I saw a rather large hole in the ground about 3 inches closer to the house than I would have expected to see a meteorite had it rolled off the metal roof and onto the ground. Jeane said she hadn’t noticed the hole and said her dog (a boxer named precious) didn’t dig holes (I found two other holes in the yard and Jeane was surprised to see those as well).

After searching for a little over an hour I left Jeane’s house and asked her if I could come back again the next to day look around some more. After I left her house I drove around and stopped at about 8-10 different businesses in the area. Compared to the farmlands I have been searching recently New Holland is like a booming metropolis. There are a lot of agricultural businesses in this area and I stopped by several different warehouses and left messages with the facilities manager to keep an eye out for meteorites on the roof tops. I also went to a driving range that was closed at the time (I searched the range, but only found golf balls).

Three Cars With Dents

Three Cars With Dents

I then went by two different car dealerships. I asked them if they had any cars on their lots damaged after July 4th weekend. One of the dealerships told me that 3 cars had been damaged the Monday after July 4th weekend. All three cars were lined up next to each other and all three had what the manager described as ‘bb-gun dents’ in the passenger side windows. The cars were parked such that the passenger side doors were facing south. Three cars next to each other all getting hit by meteorites seemed like a stretch to me and I asked around if this was possible. I was told it was unlikely as normally meteorites would be falling straight down and not at an angle. I finished up the time in New Holland that day hunting along the train tracks. Talk about a fun place to look for meteorites.

I sent the pictures out to a couple of people that night and got back some skeptical replies. The main concern was the dent was wider than what would be expected. It also lacked visible scratches that also would have been expected had a meteorite caused it. I was told the dent looked like it was caused by something that was soft and big, not something that was small and hard. I was in the area that Friday working on some farms so I went back to her house later that afternoon. I didn’t search much but I talked to her about what to look for. I also told her I wanted to get on the top of the roof to see if there was any other damage up there. I also wanted to run my metal detector through her backyard.

Bent Roof

Bent Roof

I went back to Jeane’s house again for a third time tonight and brought along my friend Dan Casey. Dan is a home inspector with National Property Inspectors and knows a lot about houses, damage to houses and is in general a pretty analytical thinker about these kinds of things. Dan has gone hunting with me a couple of times and has been helping me out with the search however he can. If you need a home inspection in Baltimore County or Southern Pennsylvania give Dan a call, he’s a great guy and really knows his stuff.  Dan climbed to the top of the roof and took this picture. The metal frame is bent right above the dent on the porch roof below. After Dan came down, I climbed up the ladder and took a look myself. It was coincidentally placed, but after thinking about it, we both agreed, that whatever would have left such a dent in the lower roof would have caused more damage in the upper roof (although I still think its possible…)

I ran an Earth magnet through the dog hole and in the flower beds next to the porch. I found magnetic particles in the dirt, but I think the ground is contaminated with a lot of metal as I was getting hits all over the back yard with my metal detector.

I realize that if you look at a pizza pie long enough you will see the Virgin Mary, however there are a lot of things going on at this house that suggest a meteorite hit it:

– Jeane’s initial report
– The broken fascia board
– The bent frame on the upper roof
– The dog hole
– The huge dent in the porch roof

The interesting thing about the three dog holes is they were all in locations where a meteorite could have landed after bouncing off the porch roof. Something is telling me the dog found the meteorite, hid it somewhere and then dug the holes to look for more.

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Sep.05 2009

September 4th, 2009 Field Update

by , under Mason Dixon Meteor

Mike Gaines and Mike Hankey

Mike Gaines and Mike Hankey

I have had a very productive week on the meteor front. Numerous leads and contacts came in as a result of the Lancaster newspaper article, my mailing also was delivered to the farmers (I got confirmation of this today). I was in the field yesterday and today following up on leads, searching fields and talking to farmers, businesses and residents.  I started out early and met up with Jeff a fellow meteorite hunter from Northern PA. Jeff has been helping me out with a lot of stuff, we covered a lot of ground today and he taught me a few new things. Jeff took off around 4:00 and I drove about 7 minutes away from the primary search zone to do a second follow up on a new lead.

Here is that lead:

Mike, I was reading the Lancaster paper tonight and saw about the meteorite-I think this clears something up for me- I am in CLASSIFIED, Pa on the early morning of July 6th, I couldnt sleep and was watching tv- all the sudden I heard a huge bang right outside my 2nd story bedroom( scared the living outta me. I peeked out and didnt see anything, I thought at the time someone must have thrown a m-80 or something at my window-upon inspecting better in the morning there is a huge dent on the top of my patio roof with black splat marks, right underneath my bedroom window-it also left a couple holes. I looked around on the ground to see if I could see anything there, but now i will have to check a little harder, after seeing your pic in the paper. But I am sure now that is what it was, because my house does not have easy access to my back yard-Thanks for the article but I think you need to be looking north of intercourse-Jeane

I have seen a lot of evidence at Jeane’s house that suggests the meteor struck her roof. I will be publishing more details in the next couple of days. I have learned to not get too excited with things, but I really think this could be it.

On my way home I stopped by Mike Gaines house. Mike is the star eye witness for the Mason Dixon Meteor and lives 15 minutes away from the geometric impact point. Mike is hunting Saturday so I dropped off a box of fliers, a few rare earth magnets and a handful of NWA meteorites to hand out to children who live on the farms. Mike recently discovered the latest video of the meteor and I got to watch the high res version on his computer. It looks much better than the one on you tube. Mike showed me his porch where he witnessed the meteor and he pointed to the area of the sky where it was. Mike’s eye witness account is very interesting as he saw multiple objects in the sky after first seeing a very bright light. Hearing the story again and being there in person gave me chills. Stay tuned for the latest updates on the meteor search. I think we are close to the end of this story.

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Sep.04 2009

Lots of new leads and hunters

by , under Mason Dixon Meteor

Thanks to the article in the Lancaster newspaper I’ve been getting lots of emails with great new leads, information and a bunch of new meteorite hunters too. If you have information, think you found something or want to help with the search please email me at mike.hankey [AT] gmail.com.

Meteor Wrong But What

Meteor Wrong But What

Yesterday, I got a call from Susan in Quarryville. Susan had found three rocks on her front lawn that were odd and just showed up one day. Quarryville was a hot search area six weeks ago and is under the flight path so the report was credible. The description Susan gave me over the phone also sounded like a meteorite. I went out to her house to inspect the rock. It was definitely interesting and a rock that I have never seen before. After looking it over and testing it with a magnet I concluded it was probably not a meteorite. While it had a crust and looked burnt, it had crystals on the outer shell and I could see layers inside the stone. It was very heavy and very odd. I’m not sure what it is and I’ve searched on google images for purple crystallized rock and a few other keywords. Please leave a comment if you know what this rock is. Thank you Susan for calling me and letting me know about this, I’m sorry it didn’t turn out to be a meteorite, I really thought it was going to be one.

Dan Michaels Search September 2nd, 2009

Dan Michaels Search September 2nd, 2009

A bunch of new meteorite hunters have joined the search which is great. Guys lmk if you have any questions. The best next thing to do is get out to the target area, start talking to farmers and telling them about what happened. Encourage them to search for meteorites on their own. Explain to them that the meteorites are black and magnetic. Tell them to keep an eye out for these that they are worth a lot of $$$. Every farmer I have talked to has been very interested in the story and will be willing to look for them when he cuts his fields — this is our best chance of recovery! But while you are at it, also ask him if you can search some of his fields. Tell him you will hand over anything you find and he will 99% of the time let you search right on the spot. Just don’t go on Sundays. Try to keep track of what fields you searched. If you want specific satellite zoom maps send me the coordinates that you want and I will email you a map.

One of the new meteorite hunters, Dan Michaels who contacted me has already been out in the field and is marking his territory. Dan is an amateur astronomer too and knows about meteorites. Great to have you on board Dan! We have over a dozen hunters who are currently working the area or will be working the area very soon.  The area Dan choose to search and the way he documented his search is a perfect example to follow. In Dan’s map C represents corn fields and T represents tobacco.  Dan mentioned that the corn field he was searching was cut the day before and the farmer was already laying manure! I thought they usually waited a couple of weeks. Dan said it is common for a lot of farmers to fertilize the land right after cutting the corn. It is critical that we talk to each and everyone of these farmers before they cut their crops so we can let them know what happened and to be on the lookout.

Here are a few pics Dan took out in the field. Nice work Dan! You are da man!

Dan Michael's Search Field September 2nd, 2009

Dan Michael's Search Field September 2nd, 2009

Dan, horse shoes are good luck right? Are you suggesting something here? I take this as a another very positive sign.

Dan Michael's Horse Shoe - September 2nd, 2009

Dan Michael's Horse Shoe - September 2nd, 2009

This search is picking up serious momentum. This thing is out there and we’re going to find it.

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Sep.03 2009

Front Page News

by , under Mason Dixon Meteor

Lancaster County paper had a front page news story about the meteorite hunt:

http://articles.lancasteronline.com/local/4/241689

I’ve already gotten some really great leads from the article. If anyone out there from Lancaster knows anything or wants to help, please leave me a comment on the blog or email me : mike.hankey [AT] gmail.com

Thanks!

Mike

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Aug.31 2009

Meteorite Hunters Wanted

by , under Mason Dixon Meteor

Meteorite hunters wanted!

Meteorite hunters wanted!

Currently seeking candidates for Meteorite Hunter and Team Leader positions.

A successful Mason Dixon Meteorite Hunter will:

  • be a hardworking, fair minded, determined, persistent, patient and honest person with good moral character
  • enjoy nature and being outside
  • have attention to detail
  • have no criminal record (no felonies)
  • be polite and respectful to the locals,
  • not use foul language, litter, or use alcohol or drugs while in the field  (if you smoke keep it in the car)
  • No experience necessary, we will train you on the job.

As a Meteorite Hunter you will be responsible for searching fields and farm land for meteorites. You will be required to keep track of your search areas on custom maps provided to you and report back to your team leaders regarding search progress. No special equipment or skills are required. If you have a good pair of eyes and an able body you can find meteorites.

Team Leaders will possess the same qualifications as Meteorite Hunters but will have added responsibilities. As a Team Leader you will:

  • manage the relationship with the landowner: when needed request permission to search, educate the land owner about meteorites, provide land owner with search updates, and notify them when you arrive and leave the property;
  • be assigned specific search areas, you will be responsible for managing these areas, determining when fields will be available for search, determining the window of opportunity before the land is tilled and ultimately making sure that the land in your area is thoroughly searched.
  • you will be responsible for recruiting and managing meteorite hunters, organizing and scheduling search parties, coordinating efforts etc.

These positions are volunteer based and should be applied for purely for the fun and excitement of it (however there are other perks). For immediate consideration and more information please contact mike.hankey@gmail.com

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Aug.30 2009

Satellite Images

by , under Mason Dixon Meteor

I purchased a custom satellite photo of the search area a couple of weeks ago. The photo was taken on July 5th, 2009 one day before the fall. While the picture doesn’t show me where the meteorites are it has been helpful in reviewing the areas I’ve searched or am planning to search. Its a 50 cm resolution photo which means each pixel is 50 cm. The image was almost 200 megs and came in tiff format. Here are two screen caps of the image, one showing the entire image and one showing a smaller area at max resolution.

Bird in Hand Satellite Photo from July 5th, 2009

Bird in Hand satellite photo from July 5th, 2009

One lane bridge satellite photo from July 5th, 2009

One lane bridge satellite photo from July 5th, 2009

I’m in the process of drawing overlays on the maps for all of the places I have searched or other meteorite hunters I’m working with have searched. I plan on publishing these soon and trying to keep them up to date as best I can. Its a lot of work to update the maps, with the info but of critical importance. With more and more people searching and more and more days in the field its easy to forget where you have already been. Here is a search map of an area I’ve been working the last few times I’ve been out.

Searched areas near one lane bridge

Searched areas near one lane bridge

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Aug.28 2009

Words of encouragement

by , under Mason Dixon Meteor

I got this email from Rob Matson regarding our current search location.

Farming in Lancaster

Farming in Lancaster

Regarding the new video from east Lancaster, Marc wrote:

“I don’t know enough about it (location, direction of view, etc.) to really say anything about how useful that video is.  I can say this, though – this meteor has already yielded far more data and a better set of calculations about its position than the vast bulk of meteors that actually produce meteorites.”

Marc is absolutely right on this score:  it is extremely unusual (and fortunate) to have such good information for a bolide.  Rarely are you able to pinpoint the fall location so accurately.

Marc wrote:

Derik Bower Hunting Meteorites in Lancaster, PA

Derik Bower Hunting Meteorites in Lancaster, PA

“Fundamentally, people find meteorites by looking at the ground and covering as much ground as possible.  I’m just saying that from here on out I think time spent best is time spent walking in the fields, whether that’s by you and your colleagues or by motivated locals. Meteorites are probably out there, and we’re not going to improve their estimated location very much.”

While this is all true, there is also an undeniable human psychology that goes along with searching for meteorites where none have yet been found. It is that nagging voice in your head that taunts you with distracting thoughts:  “Am I even close to the right location? What if there is some fundamental error in the calculated impact zone? Is it still possible that the astrophoto recorded something other than the bolide? Could the whole thing have disintegrated to dust and failed to produce discoverable meteorites?”  It’s only human to have these doubts after you’ve spent a fair amount of time looking. Meteorite hunting is far from an exact science, which is part of what makes it so rewarding when you ARE successful.

Levis Fourth Field

Levis Fourth Field

So let me give you some words of encouragement. First of all, there are definitely meteorites on the ground somewhere. The entry velocity was slow enough, the bolide was bright enough, fragmentation did occur, and sonic booms were heard/felt. Yes, the comparatively small size of the estimated impact location is entirely due to the tight tolerances imposed by your astrophotograph, so without your photo you’d be stuck searching a much larger area. This is why it’s crucial to rule out alternative possibilities (like airplanes) as being the source of the streaks in your image. I think I’ve done a fairly thorough job of debunking the airplane possibility, so we’re not left with many realistic alternatives. A bolide is by far the most likely remaining choice.

Its also not space junk. This is easily checked (and I always do for especially long- lasting bolides with shallow entry angles), but in this case there is no need. Man-made space debris never reenters at steep angles. Well, not absolutely never — there is one exception: a suborbital trajectory (i.e. missile impact). But I think we can rule that out in this case, seeing as how you don’t live very near Kwajalein Atoll! ;-)

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Aug.27 2009

Bolide Meteor Video From Space

by , under Mason Dixon Meteor

This is NOT the Mason Dixon Meteor. My friend Mark emailed me this video after he saw it on an astronomy forum. I lifted the video off of you tube and re-edited it to remove 1:40 minutes of dead time. I then looped the video 5 times so you can see it. It was originally posted as a UFO video, so it could be fake, but some people think it is a fireball meteor. I wanted to put it out there to see what you think. LMK by leaving a comment.

here is the original post from the space.com discussion forum.

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Aug.23 2009

Another Meteor Dream

by , under Mason Dixon Meteor

I had another meteor dream last night. We had found the meteor. Scientists determined the fall was part of a large comet that would collide with Earth on its next pass. Bruce Willis was in it. It was pretty cool.

This picture came in on a comment after I made this post. The pic was so good, I had to promote it to the front page.

Meteor Dream

Meteor Dream

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Aug.22 2009

Blue & Yellow Zone Maps

by , under Mason Dixon Meteor

I’m gonna cut this series short one night, do a combo and post the last 2 maps. Its late and I had a long day in the field searching the sides of roads and talking to farmers and locals. I’m going back tomorrow so I have to get some rest. I will update this post later with the sector detail maps.

While the strewn field map does not have any markers in the blue zone or yellow zone, they are still worth searching and contacting landowners in this area is also a top priority. The blue zone especially could be good as the meteor path crosses it. The yellow zone is west of the current trajectory, so it is slightly lower priority, but should nothing turn up in the other areas this will be next on the list. Landowner contact in the yellow zone is also a top priority.

Mason Dixon Meteor - Blue Zone Map

Mason Dixon Meteor - Blue Zone Map

Mason Dixon Meteor - Yellow Zone

Mason Dixon Meteor - Yellow Zone

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Aug.21 2009

Red Zone Map

by , under Mason Dixon Meteor

Here is the map for the red zone.

Mason Dixon Meteor - Red Zone Map

Mason Dixon Meteor - Red Zone Map

The scarecrow in this map represents the 10g marker. It has been suggested that the best place to find meteorites would be inbetween the 10g and 100g markers (100g is in the orange zone). Meteorites in this size range (10g-100g) would be the most plentiful and therefor the easiest to find. These markers are only as good as the calculations which are estimates, so while it is suggested these are the ‘target areas’ there is a margin of error and in reality it could be a few clicks the other way. Contacting all land owners and searching all areas in all 5 of these zones and possibly more zones will be required. Unfortunately its not as easy as going to the exact location marked on a treasure map. Treasure maps are still fun though.

Red Zone - Sectors A, B, C

Red Zone - Sectors A, B, C

Red Zone - Sector D

Red Zone - Sector D

I will be in the search area Friday and Saturday, if you are interested in hunting together send me an email.

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Aug.20 2009

Orange Zone Map

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Here is the second map in a series of five — The Orange Zone.

Mason Dixon Meteor - Search Zone Orange

Mason Dixon Meteor - Search Zone Orange

The Orange Zone is special because it contains three markers from Marc Fries strewn field map. These markers should not be intended to be an x-marks the spot indicator (trust me I’ve been to them already). They are simply a calculated estimate based on lots of assumptions. They indicate an area where these sized meteorites would be found (if they existed in the first place) and all assumptions were true. With that being said the markers are:

  • Dead Tree = 10,000g
  • Man Eating Carp = 1,000g
  • Cross Roads = 100g

Here are the high zoom maps for the four sub sections.

Orange Zone - Sector A

Orange Zone - Sector A

Orange Zone - Sector B

Orange Zone - Sector B

There is a stream that runs through the middle of the orange zone. In sector A, I saw a big black rock sitting in the middle of the stream. I’m going to walmart to get some black waders before my next outing. I must admit I have already pulled a 30lb black rock out of the stream, turn out to be terrestrial (no I didn’t bring it home with me).

Orange Zone - Sector C

Orange Zone - Sector C

Orange Zone - Sector D

Orange Zone - Sector D

I recommend printing all of the maps and drawing on them with a pen or pencil. Shade in areas you’ve searched. Write notes on the back about land owners and number the notes to the keyed houses on the master maps. I’ve noticed the farmers really love to see their properties on these maps. Use the zoomed in satellite sector maps when talking to the farmers, I’m not sure how they would interpret the skull and cross bones on the pirate maps… Its a little scary :)

If you are serious about searching and talking with the landowners email me (mike.hankey [AT] gmail.com) and I can give you some tips and set you up with some information packets and other things.

Most of these roads have not been thoroughly searched. If you don’t want to deal with asking for permission, check the ditches and grass on the sides of roads.

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Aug.19 2009

New Mason Dixon Meteor Video

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Star witness turned star fireball chaser M Gaines has recovered another video of the Mason Dixon Meteor. We cannot publish any details about its location however we can say it was in-between the eastern edge of Lancaster City and the current Rob Matson drop zone. If you are working the trajectory and I know who you are I can confidentially give you the details through email. If you don’t have my email leave a comment. Early analysis of this video confirm the current search location.

The video is very difficult to make out, what you are seeing is the reflection of the meteor on the hood of a truck. You have to watch the video 5-10 times to really see it. Look in the top right corner.

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