Hi,  it’s about 8 pm east coast US time on Wednesday (23 January) as I write this.  I just got done with a pleasant half-hour catching up with John Schutt.  Here’s the highlights…..

-865 meteorites, give or take a few meteo-wrongs.  Awesome total, higher than expected. And a higher percentage of non-ordinary-chondrite specimens than we usually expect at Davis Ward. Nothing really big though- John says “only a few grapefruits and a lotta grapes”.

-MUCH less new ground covered this year than planned because the team kept finding new meteorites in old places.  John estimates that over 50% of the finds this year were in areas others had searched previously. Part of is is excellent condition (lack of snow cover), part of it is excellent sample-hawks (John specifically calls out Hosey, Elena and Paul for their bird-dog-like determination).

-The remaining four (Paul, Sheridan Brian and Jim) are en route from Davis Ward to McMurdo as I write this.  Hosey and Johnny Ringo scheduled to fly north to Christchurch today, Elena’s on the schedule tomorrow.

That’s it from me for now- I’d rather the people that were actually there tell you the stories.

-from dismal Cleveland,  Ralph