The author, Avi Loeb, is a scientist who is passionate about discovering evidence of extraterrestrial life. He is the head of the Galileo Project and is planning an expedition to the Pacific Ocean in 2025 to retrieve larger pieces of the interstellar meteor IM1, which impacted Earth in 2014.
The previous expedition in 2023 was able to collect small molten droplets from the meteor, which revealed that 22% of the samples had a unique "BeLaU" chemical composition never before reported in the scientific literature. This could indicate an origin outside the solar system, either natural or artificial.
To better understand the nature of IM1, the author wants to find larger intact pieces that can be analyzed for their age, material strength, and thermal properties. However, the $6.5 million price tag for the expedition is not yet funded. The author expresses concern about this, noting that if he had pursued a business career earlier, he might have been able to self-fund the research.
Despite the funding challenge, the author has received recognition for his work, including being named an "Eminent Scholar" at Kyung Hee University in South Korea and being invited to serve on the selection committee for their new Miwon Peace Prize. Additionally, the author recently received an email from a fan who expressed interest in funding the upcoming expedition.
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by Avi Loeb at avi-loeb.medium.com 07-18-2024
https://avi-loeb.medium.com/we-are-going-back-to-interstellar-meteor-1-6c4f3f778846Deeper Inquiries