Randall also mentions in the title text that his favorite part of this real flowchart, which is the part where if anyone saw the "meteor" fall then it is 'NOT A METEORITE.' What he most likes about it is that this is not a mistake.įirst of all the chance of actually being near a falling meteorite is exceedingly small. The authors of those resources notes that they have received many rock samples and photos (or even personal visits) from people claiming to have discovered meteorites and thus they would likely benefit from just providing people the shortcut flowchart from Randall, as a way of saying, "leave meteorite identification to the professionals." In the title text Randall mentions that the comic image is a link to the more detailed (now defunct, mirror here) Meteorite or meteorwrong? Self-Test Check list flowchart at the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Washington University in St. A similar short flowchart as this has been used recently in 1691: Optimization, and another only two box chart was used in 1195: Flowchart. Meteorite identification, however, is very difficult, so the brevity of this flowchart in a way pokes fun at the need for a flowchart to identify meteorites, since laypeople are not experienced enough to confirm that a rock is indeed a meteorite. The flowchart, though facetious, would actually work the vast majority of the time a person picks up a rock and believes it to be a meteorite, since any single rock one finds on the surface of the earth is almost definitely not a meteorite.įlowcharts are often used ( in xkcd) to give the inexperienced a step-by-step process to follow (see a guide to flowcharts here: 518: Flow Charts). Thus, they are very rare rocks that come from space, and can stem from broken asteroids, the Moon, and sometimes (very rarely) even from Mars. Meteorites form when a meteoroid survives entrance through the Earth's atmosphere as a meteor. Note: Clicking on the image on xkcd (click the date above the comic to go to the comic on xkcd) takes you to the (now defunct, mirror here) Meteorite or meteorwrong? Self-Test Check list flow chart at the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Washington University in St. My favorite part is how 'Did someone see it fall? -> Yes' points to 'NOT A METEORITE.' This is not a mistake. Title text: Click for an actual flowchart for identifying a meteorite.
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