AMERICAN METEORITES—HENDERSON 
together. Many stony meteorites are 
relatively friable. 
By far the greatest number of stony 
meteorites contain rounded silicate 
bodies called chondrules (pl. 6, a, 6, c). 
These, as a rule, are small and are not 
glassy like the quartz grains in a sand- 
stone but are composed of bladed or 
needlelike crystalline aggregates usu- 
ally of a single type of mineral, al- 
though sometimes two minerals will 
be enclosed in the rounded body. 
Nothing closely resembling chondrules 
has been found in our terrestrial rocks. 
The finder of a suspected stony 
meteorite should, if possible, grind 
down a small area by holding the mass 
against a grindstone. Structures such 
as those shown in plate 6, 6, can then be 
more easily seen, especially if the sur- 
face is dampened with water and ex- 
amined with a magnifying glass. 
Some of the rarer types of stony 
meteorites do not have these chon- 
drules, and an even more limited num- 
ber lack metallic inclusions. Hence 
the finder of a specimen believed to 
be a meteorite and having some of the 
265 
features mentioned above should sub- 
mit the specimen to someone experi- 
enced in the identification of these 
objects. 
The most abundant mineral in the 
rocks of our earth is quartz, a sub- 
stance that very rarely occurs in 
meteorites. The few minerals that 
are common to both terrestrial rocks 
and stony meteorites have identical 
compositions in each, but the habit or 
physical structure of the meteoritic 
minerals is very distinct from that of 
the same minerals occurring in ordi- 
nary rocks. As yet, no definite reason 
is known for this difference in struc- 
ture, but the fact that there is such a 
difference is fortunate in that it per- 
mits the definite identification of 
meteoritic stones. 
Meteorites have been found to con- 
tain minute traces of precious metals, 
as well as diamonds (not gem quality), 
but never in commercial quantities. 
Meteorites have no intrinsic value, but 
are important because scientific in- 
formation can be obtained from their 
study. 
TABLE 4.— Witnessed falls of stony meteorites in the United States 
Year | Mouth | Day | A.M. | P.M. |. “she 
in kg. 
ALABAMA: 
PNT ENS torre ee aere eee te cere eee 1933 W/ 11 DZ OM ees. 0. 265 
Deariville ne ye scat faucvoceraee rok oie 1868 11 Dilivalercescakere 5:00 2. 04 
OGL DD ead! Sates Ke Sate te Poe etl I Sl ae 1900 5 USS | ISSO) Neo achs oc Baz 
rankfort:, S093 ec oe eee ek 1868 12 STO ere aRN oe 3:00 522 
LCG) OUfO) ON eeaRMO NG Sts BROIL STON Ge 1907 1 HUA | ae ev es 8:00 . 877 
IARI ZONAs Ol brooks anes oe ae 1912 7 Oe | Ree cee A RAVE 218.0 
ARKANSAS: 
bayetteville monet aien or 1934 12 PASE ARE eres DN 
1s DUN Eros Se reece & esti i aay Semere ees A 1930 7 13 DOOR eres ar 16.7 
Baragouldirs sateen ehancee 1930 2 17 B08 rnc ea 409.0 
@Cororapo;) Johnstown). 3.0.55. cp0s +s. 0 « 1924 Uf Gallic: 4:20 40.3 
@onnEctTIcuT: Weston.2-....0....°. 1807 2, 14 O30" eae 150. 0 
GEORGIA: 
HOrsythiccasteypaeredets ae Sieve ai aid Os 1929 5 SuiRGeeace 3:30 16.0 
PETA ees acess eile Steves gages) aia oe 1869 10 (Om) fie la Ue eat erenenoee es 5 hat 
ILLINOIs: 
Ben dar tos sn ce eee aaa ee 1938 9 29 ORO) “ia eaaeee iS 4 
Men ae eteee cee nies Se O27 if Do hal Rint 1:00 74. 8 
INDIANA: 
Elarnisonere nce cr tenor 1859 5 PANG nascar e 4:00 . 70 
INOCHESCED rarer cl osveveras cia slo sieeres 1876 12 PD leliaicra aise 8:45 = 34: 
