The Meteorites of Alberta

"For amateur astronomer and author Anthony Whyte, the exploration of space begins in our own backyard. His new book--The Meteorites of Alberta--is a journey that delves into the history of this province and the explorers who are still peeling away the legends to find the facts. Whyte realized that Alberta is rich in meteorites and cites examples like the 1,100-year-old crater near Whitecourt, finds near Ferintosh, Vulcan, Kinsella, Mayerthorpe, Bruderheim, the nationally acclaimed Edmonton meteorite to the almost mystical Iron Creek meteor. Although scientific reams had been written on these finds, its circulation has been limited to the scientific community. Whyte wanted more and felt these incredible stories needed a greater exposure. But what Whyte may not have realized even as he penned the book, is that it really is a traveler's field guide. Loaded with scientific explanations of the various discoveries, it also captures the hunters, their experiences and provides a road map to their finds for future adventurers to follow." Anthony Kovats, County Market, October 21, 2009

"Earth is hit by meteors all the time. The Meteorites of Alberta looks at several major meteorites who have crashed into the planet in Alberta. Sixteen have made science history, and each chapter details a rock and how it has changed our fundamental understanding of the universe. Aimed at both professionals in this field and non-specialist general readers, Anthony J. Whyte keeps it scientific and informative, making The Meteorites of Alberta a top pick for science collections." Wisconsin Bookwatch, December 2009

"With The Meteorites of Alberta, Anthony J. Whyte has written a magnificent book. It is one of the most brilliant in-depth compilations that I have read, on a specific field in the area of meteorites." Dr. Svend Buhl, Meteorite Recon, Germany

"In The Meteorites of Alberta, Anthony J. Whyte (Edmonton Centre) presents the story of the truly remarkable record of falls and finds in the wild rose country. He engagingly tells the story of discovery, analysis, and local, national, and international interest for each of the Alberta meteorites -- from the Belly River to the Vulcan specimens. The writing is clear, the detail is accessible, and there is a profusion of images, tables, and maps. There is no better place to get an orientation of the material." R.A. Rosenfeld, Bulletin of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, February 2010

"[The meteorites of Alberta] would appeal to readers with many different areas of interest, from those interested in the historical aspects of meteorites to those researchers with a more specific interest in Canadian meteorites or indeed, specific well-known Canadian samples such as Abee and Bruderheim. The book starts with a short, well-written introduction to meteorites and their study, outlining the features of different meteorite types, description of the different mineralogies and chemical compositions, how to recognize a meteorite, and explanations of the different techniques used to analyse samples. I felt this introduction served very well.... The indexing is clear, there are notes provided for each chapter, there are detailed references for those wishing to seek out the primary sources and there is a brief but well-written glossary, mostly describing mineralogical nomenclature and other petrologic terms which will be of great help to the nonspecialist reader.... The description of the cultural history associated with the Iron Creek meteorite and the descriptions of more recent finds and falls, for me are probably the highlights of this book. The thorough and fascinating accounts of witnessed falls by both professional and nonprofessional observers are well-researched and engagingly written." Caroline Smith, Department of Mineralogy, The Natural History Museum, London, UK, Meteoritics & Planetary Science 45, Nr 5, 915-916 (2010) doi: 10.1111/j.1945-5100.2010.01088.x

# 5 on the Edmonton Journal's Bestsellers list (Edmonton Nonfiction) for the week of August 16, 2013.