Back in 2014, NASA has been tipped that the authentic moon rocks which have been stolen from its facilities. The claim was sent through a classified e-mail addressed to the Office of Inspector General (OIG) adding that these pieces of historically important objects survive as an heirloom within the tipsters' family circle.
NASA has received the tip from a woman who claimed that she received the moon rocks from his father-in-law. It was given out to her as a gift which the late grandfather had during his stint at the Texas A&M University. According to Muckrock, the woman claimed that the said Moon rock measured the same size of a large Apple which weighed more than a pound and had been divided into 5 parts.
One piece has remained under her safe-keeping and has been made into a rock necklace oval-shaped pendant with measurement the same size of a nickel. It approximately averages to about $275,000 per gram, it is estimated to cost at around $125 million from its conservative value of $2.5 million, Atlas Obscura added. This 1973 valuation has already been adjusted for inflation.
The case commenced on March 24, 2016, when the tipster handed out the gift to NASA for further investigative analysis. According to sources, it holds heartfelt value and is given out to NASA's objectives.
However, as soon as the Moon rock arrived for the investigation, they have been easily dismissed as fake. NASA analysis has, in fact, clarified that it actually is terrestrial in nature. This means they are not Moon rock but a regular rock. Therefore, the case has been closed.
NASA has sent back the false Moon rock via FedEx which includes the analytic explanation of the results. The sad part is, the old man who believed that his Moon rocks were authentic had been scammed all his life. What is your take on this case?
