Meteorites, Ice, and Antarctica

by Cassidy, William A.

• ISBN13: 9781107403918
• ISBN10: 110740391X
• Edition: Reprint
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-03-29
• Publisher: Cambridge Univ Pr

Summary

Bill Cassidy led meteorite recovery expeditions in the Antarctic for fifteen years and his searches have resulted in the collection of thousands of meteorite specimens from the ice. This personal account of his field experiences on the U.S. Antarctic Search for Meteorites Project reveals the influence the work has had on our understanding of the moon, Mars and the asteroid belt. Cassidy describes the hardships and dangers of fieldwork in a hostile environment, as well as the appreciation he developed for its beauty. William Cassidy is Emeritus Professor of Geology and Planetary Science at the University of Pittsburgh. He initiated the U.S. Antarctic Search for Meteorites (ANSMET) nroject and led meteorite recovery expeditions in Antarctica in1976. His name is found attached to a mineral (cassidyite), on the map of Antarctica (Cassidy Glacier), and in the Catalog of Asteroids (3382 Cassidy). Profiled in "American Men of Science," and "Who's Who in America," he is also a recipient of The Antarctic Service Medal from the United States and has published widely in Science, Meteoritics and Planetary Science, and The Journal of Geophysical Research.

Table of Contents

Setting the Stage

Antarctica and the National Science Foundation

How the project began

The first three years

Later years of the ANSMET Program

Alone (or in small groups)

ANSMET Pays Off: Field Results and their Consequences

Mars on the ice

Meteorites from the Moon

How, and where in the Solar System?

Has it Been Worthwhile?

Evaluating the collection - and speculating on its significance

Meteorite stranding surfaces and the ice sheet

The future: what is, is; but what will be, might not

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