Meteorite Hunters Michael Farmer and Stories of Interstellar Rocks and Stories

By Jeremy Berlin

February 19, 2013

Michael Farmer was one of the hunters of the full - time meteorites in the world, since the 1990s, 40 - year - old citizens from Tucson, Arizona, have been exploring the world to find pieces of rock between the stars, racing to be the first to arrive on the scene and sell his findings to museums and private collectors. On Friday, when Russians reportedly tried to collect fragments of meteorites that passed and injured hundreds of people, Farmer spoke to National Geographic about his unusual work.

Why are so many people in Russia busy collecting meteorite fragments?

Michael: This is a historic event, it's going to be talked about forever, everybody wants to have a little part of it, and scientifically, we want to learn about it, we want to know what's out there, and we want to know how much, and we want to know what damage can be caused. The initial data from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory states that about 7,000 tons landed.

How many meteorite fragments are that

You know it's on Earth?

Michael: There are several hundred thousand known meteorites, of course, millions and millions on this planet; we just have to find them.

How many other full-time meteorite hunters?

Michael: There's probably 20 of us, if you add a part-time hunter who goes somewhere every time [an impact], then the number may be a hundred.

How did you become a meteorite hunter?

Michael: Here in Tucson we now have the world's largest mineral exhibit, and I bought a meteorite at this same exhibit 20 years ago, and I was completely obsessed and addicted, and I've been traveling the world more than I could count for the last four million miles with just American Airlines.

How many countries have you visited?

Michael: About 70 countries, by my final count, about 50, 59 trips to Africa worked much in Africa, where the Sahara and other deserts made meteorites easier to find than anywhere else, and also kept them well maintained.

What challenges do you face while hunting?

Michael: Now, normally you get into a situation that's a little bit messy where no one really knows much, in Africa and other places that I visit, usually don't understand what's going on, and most of the time they don't care about it, they care more about the food that day. But then someone came along and said, "I'll pay you to find this rock," the whole village was empty and then a lot of rocks appeared.

This could be a dangerous job, I've been robbed, imprisoned, for example, I was imprisoned two years ago in the Middle East, in Oman. And the same year, 2011, in the fall I went to Kenya three times after a large meteorite fell, and on my third trip there, I was the victim of a robbery where they attacked us and almost killed me. Luckily they decided to just take everything and leave instead of killing us, it's a dangerous job for involving money, and people want that money.

The thermostat meteorite from Canada. The people in Canada and the Canadian museum want to make it a national relic. Evidence of how important mining yields are for a country.

What's the most valuable meteorite you've ever found?

Michael: Well, I've found three separate moonstones in the Middle East. But the best meteorite I found was with three colleagues in Canada -- it was actually found in 1931, but we went back to the site and found 53 pounds [17 pounds] again -- it's a very rare type of meteorite called pallatte, and it's about 4.5 billion years old. We sold it to the Canadian government for a little under a million dollars, and now it's in the Royal Ontario Museum, in Toronto, and it's considered a national treasure.

Where else would you sell your merchandise?

Michael: Now, I do shows all over the world, in France, Germany, Japan, and I go to exhibits, like the one here in Tucson, which is the world's largest mineral exhibit and it lasts for three weeks, and museums always call me.

It's a small market, not like I need a store or anything, people call me or email me or go to my website and look around, the market is so greedy about everything new that when I get a new meteorite, it usually sells within hours. I don't even have to work anymore, I just call a few people, and everything's gone.

Where do you keep your collection?

Michael: I have several storage sites, so don't ever put all your eggs in one basket, and I have a lot of stuff, and sometimes I buy this stuff by tons, and it goes into storage and I sell it one by one.

How's the verification going?

Michael: Every meteorite, whatever we want to have its official name, has to go to the lab, where it's shared and studied by scientists.

And in the collector's market, we worked collaboratively with scientists, and I provided them with rock, and they provided me with data, both of which I needed to make money, and people wanted to know what they were buying before they bought it.

Are there legal or ethical implications?

In the meteorite mining?

Michael: There's always been some countries that passed laws, but when I was arrested in Oman, they actually didn't have any. The only law they could charge us with was illegal mining operations. And a judge said, "If a kid can do it, then it's not a mine," and I was released and sent home.

But there's always a friction between the collector's market and the scientific market. So if it weren't for us, 99 percent of these meteorites would be lost to science.

What about this meteorite attack?

Michael: I guarantee you there will be scientists from all over the world going to this place.

Are you going to catch the next flight to Moscow?

Michael: Well, of course as a meteorite merchant, I wanted to have this.

But I might not go, but getting into Russia can be complicated, and I'll only buy a few of the Russians when it comes up.

Of course, if this happens in China or somewhere in Africa, I'll pack my suitcases and get on a plane, find out everything once I get there.

Source: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/130215-meteorite-hunter-russian-moon-interstellar-rocks-space-meteor-asteroid