----------

Mike,

I really do not appreciate the tone of your previous message,

particularly the threats. My job is not to believe you or that your

sample is a piece of meteorite (science doesn't begin from a position of

belief, one way or the other). My job doesn't even involve you or this

subject; I was simply asked by NASA to investigate this issue as a

favor to them. I am doing it on my own time, in addition to everything

else I actually get paid to do. That, Mike, is the situation that all

the scientists you have talked to face.

You write unkindly about the meteorite experts having made up their mind

on this issue but, quite frankly, you are no less guilty. Their

interpretations, you claim, are only opinions. I am sorry but I have to

disagree with this assessment. I have examined your data and they

simply do not support the elaborate scenario that you propose. You

bolster your theory with accounts of finding the rock that cannot be

verified. In other words, you present your opinion that this is a

life-bearing meteorite from Mars despite all evidence to the contrary.

Put the shoe on the other foot: If someone came to you with this story

and a rock that showed none of the cardinal indicators that it was a

meteorite, martian or otherwise, wouldn't you be a little skeptical?

To repeatedly complain that we are not doing our job, or that NASA is

not intested is patently absurd. I wouldn't have taken as much time

with this as I have, trying to patiently explore your view point and

assess all your data, if there was any merit to that charge. My worry

is that you are so convinced that you have something 'miraculous' that

you are simply unwilling to accept reasoned alternate view points. That

is fine, I suppose. But don't constantly make the charge that you are

not being heard; nearly a dozen reputable scientists have examined the

data and the samples of your rock, and at least one meteorite collector!

Kring and others have provided you with their time and effort and their

considered assessment. But it can't be endless. Unless you have

something substantial to present them, then quite naturally they have to

get back to doing other things.

If you are dissatisfied with the way I am handling this issue, let me

know and I will try to find someone else to help you.

Buck Sharpton

Staff Scientist

Lunar and Planetary Institute

3600 Bay Area Blvd.

Houston TX 77058

281-486-2111 (voice)

281-486-2162 (fax)

>----------

>Sent: Monday, July 20, 1998 1:11 PM

>To: Sharpton, Buck

>Subject: re: re: visit

>

><<File: glass1.jpg>><<File: glass3.jpg>>

>Buck,

>I will take any meeting with any people anytime. And my ex says I'm hard to

>get along with.

>

>The reason I want other experts, like Mars experts, and not just meteorite

>experts is because meteorite experts have things backwards. They don't think

>anything is a meteorite unless they proclaim it a meteorite. But a meteorite

>is a piece of space debris that falls to Earth, not something proclaimed a

>meteorite by an expert. Logically and philosophically, their opinion that all

>meteorites must be non-vesicled rocks with flat surfaces just doesn't hold

>up. All of my experiences as a human being tell me this rock fell from the

>sky and shows every sign of friction with the atmosphere. I just don't think

>there is a scenario where a lava rock would be made in a river bed 50ma, lay

>there for 36ma, and then be encompassed by another piece of lava rock 13

>million years ago. Then it had to somehow stay dry and then get lifted into

>space so that it could fall on the Frass ranch. And all of the material for

>both rocks and the sand inside is made from the same source material and has

>a linear nature. We now know for certain that these types of vesicles rock

>are prevalent on Mars and thus it is probable that some have made their way

>to Earth.

>

>As more evidence of this rock's external heating, I took another sample from

>the rock today. I was trying to get some of the 50ma rock to see if it was

>made the same way that the gray rock was made: that is by lava moving through

>a sandy watercourse. I think that it was. Every vesicle has clay like

>material in it. I don't think that the particles could get into every

>vesicle by filtration after the rock was created. The only difference

>between the two rocks is that the red rock seems to be associated with the

>clay like material while the sandy mixture that hasn't been wet in 13ma is

>associated with the gray rock. The red (50ma) rock does appear to have been

>under some influence of water, but it was there 36ma before being entombed by

>the gray rock and was never tumbled in a stream, just slightly wet a few

>times.. Anyway, as I looked through the debris that fell out of the hole

>from the latest sample, I spied another little piece of glass. The one I

>found today is labeled glass3 and I have included glass1, a piece of glass

>with tiny particles embedded within that didn't get melted. To me, this

>means the edges of the rock had to be above 1000 degrees F. The glass3

>sample is curved like a contact lens and is irregular over its entire

>surface. You can see some of the wiggles at the bottom of the picture. It

>looks like it was just peeled off the lava material. The glass1 sample is

>curved on the bottom but is flat on top. The particles melted within didn't

>get hot enough to be melted and they are trapped like it was a tiny paper

>weight.

>

>

>So I guess I really don't care who you invite to the meeting. It is obvious

>that you don't believe this rock is a meteorite or you would be really

>excited about what it means. You are now writing your own individual chapter

>of this book in history. I know that sooner or later, this rock will get the

>recognition and attention it deserves. I will do my best to make humankind

>aware of the rock and once it becomes known, we will all joke about the time

>it took NASA to realize what a treasure I have to offer. My goal is to make

>NASA look good in this matter and all matters, so it doesn't matter how long

>you take to make your report, because I will do my best to make sure that no

>one suffers anything but a red face when this is over. But on the other side

>of the coin, mankind does need to know about this rock and NASA in particular

>needs to know the facts before sending any more probes to Mars. This rock

>indicates to me that volcanic action may still be present and most assuredly

>life still exists on Mars. If the volcanoes are still seeping, there could be

>some very interesting things still making their way around these heat and

>water sources.

>

>Invite who you want and I will just let history record the results. I don't

>trust the meteorite experts because I don't feel they have dealt with me in

>good faith. No body likes to admit they have made a mistake and especially

>experts. If the people you invite are open and honest and give me a fair

>chance, that is all I could ever ask for. But once burned, most people

>become less trustful and I have been told a lot of things by a lot of experts

>that haven't come true. I have built my life around the truth and my word is

>very important to me. When I tell someone that I will do something, I try

>very hard to make sure that my word means something. The reason I want other

>experts there is because they haven't already made up their minds and I feel

>they will be more open minded since I am claiming this is a new type of

>meteorite and so none of the experts have every seen one before. So if I can

>prove to a Mars expert that this rock might have come from Mars, then it

>would have to be a meteorite, unless someone happened to bring a piece of

>Mars back to Earth. I personally think that it got here by natural means,

>because I am unconvinced of the existence of aliens and mankind hasn't gotten

>to Mars yet. But no matter what I have told Kring or tried to show him, he

>just says he doesn't believe it is a meteorite. His mind is made up and he

>won't listen to valid scientific arguments. This rock is too important for

>opinion and needs to be studied carefully and truthfully by people who have

>the training and proper equipment..

>

>So do want you want, invite who you want, and take as much time as you want.

>But please remember, one day everyone will know of your actions or inactions.

> That day may be sooner than you think.

>

>Your friend,

>