Rock and Roll

STRUMBLE. (strim-ball),n. spherical fragment of meteorite. Named after similar pyroclasts
                                           or volcanic bombs found in Stromboli, Italy.

Strumble would be an ideal word to feature on that old TV favourite "Call my Bluff" where pundits offer seemingly plausible explanations and it is up to the opposing side to extract the true meaning from the skillful trail of misdirection and falsehoods. The word itself is comparatively new to the english language as tends to be the case with many objects of galactic origin which are only now explicable and understood in science. The very recent landing of a small fridge sized spacecraft, in the loosest sense of that word, on a comet has sparked renewed interest in the phenomena of Strumbles.

A popular misconception is that meteorites or shooting stars are extremely rare events in our earth's atmosphere but in fact they are a commonplace feature which does not warrant mention in  the media apart from, most exceptionally, the large explosive event over Russia in 2013. As long as the Universe continues to develop then there will always be planetary, galactic and other debris on a collision course with us.

Most simply burn up on entering the friction of the upper atmosphere. It is this exposure to such extreme temperatures that shapes the original rocks into the distinctive smooth and dense spheres characteristic of strumbles.

My collection of strumbles began with one passed down to me by a distant relative some years ago and over the last 20 years I have added to the number through rummaging at car boot sales and by purchasing through the many web pages run by enthusiasts keen to trade and exchange their own accumulated items.

The largest in my possession is around 12 cm in diameter. This is quite a modest example as Strumbles found in the vicinity of the huge meteorite crater at Coon Butte, Arizona, in the United States measure up to close to a metre across.

The strumble season has no equivalent to say the Glorious Twelfth but generally coincides with the spring equinox when most fragments of space rock reach the atmosphere. The spread of molten formed strumbles is understandably over a very large area making them very difficult to find but then that is part of the fascination and challenge.

Luckily, in the UK the spring peak is early in the agricultural growing season and with little ground cover there is an improved prospect of finding the elusive visitors from outer space.

Metal detectors are of some use because of the traces of pure aluminium and tungsten amongst the matrix of pulverised quartz.

Before tramping across fields it is always diplomatic to ask the permission of the land owner. In my home area I have spent many countless hours roaming the countryside. Akin to fishing it is not that important to make a catch if there is good exercise and fresh air benefits.

Equipment for strumble hunting is relatively inexpensive and well suited as an amateur pursuit. A plastic carrier bag is ideal, perhaps two doubled up but taking care that the rock is not still hot from a fresh descent, a notebook, trowel, small toffee hammer and GPS system, typically on a mobile phone.

The Smithsonian Institute in Washington DC has a Strumble Facility and compiles a database of incidences on a world wide scale. This is intended to catalogue origin and composition in an attempt to understand the complexities of the galaxy.

It has been a matter of speculation that Strumbles may be returned to space aboard unmanned and later manned craft fitted with long range transmitters.

In order to become a successful Strumble hunter (the odds of finding two near identical pieces from the same meterorite were quoted in New Scientist as 25,000,000,000,000 to 1) some rudimentary knowledge of their composition, characteristics and chemistry is necessary. I have learnt much from my fellow hunters and have read widely in journals and authoritarian papers on the subject.

Strumbles hit the earth at around 2000 mph and so can leave a noticeable impact crater even for the smaller examples. This pattern makes them easier to discern over bits of iron ore, scrap metal, flint and chalk rock which are major components in my local area, The high silica-quartz content gives them a diamond-hard quality and many a time upon striking them with the toffee hammer I have been at peril of losing an eye or suffering cuts and abrasions. On a sunny day the glint from the pinkish hue of the quartz is quite beautiful.

Keep your eyes open and your wits about you and you may well join the ranks, the ever growing ranks of those dead keen to discover a strumble of their own.

(written in 1981 for a school magazine and updated today)