Sunday, June 5, 2011

Fake Moon Rock Bust In A Denny's

Did you see the news last week about the woman who was busted in California after an undercover investigator with NASA's Office of Inspector General agreed to purchase a purported Moon rock specimen from her for $1.7 million?

There were several aspects of THIS STORY that I found notable.  One is that NASA apparently has undercover agents.  A second is that, if you're trying to sell someone a fake Moon rock for $1.7 million, the scam would probably be more credible if you arrange to meet somewhere a little more upscale than a Denny's.  A third intriguing aspect of this story was the history of other "Moon rock busts" by NASA over the last 30 years included at the end of the article.  I was particularly intrigued by the 2002 heist of a 600 lb. office safe containing lunar samples by four students working at the Johnson Space Center in Houston.

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