VERY RARE MCMURDO ANTARTIC COIN 30TH ANNV. OF 1958 IGY

Description: NOTE: McMurdo Station, located at 77 degrees 51 minutes S, 166 degrees 40 minutes E, is the largest Antarctic station. McMurdo is built on the bare volcanic rock of Hut Point Peninsula on Ross Island, the solid ground farthest south that is accessible by ship. The station was established in December 1955. It is the logistics hub of the U.S. Antarctic Program. Fred R. Zinkann has made coins in Tantalum material which is a hard blue-coloured metal with a very high melting point, too expensive and difficult to work for coinage. Zinkann produced less than 150 of these coins in a few different metals some as little as 5 in quantity. This coin I believe is Niobium. .999Niobium, 3.5 grams with plain edge. It is 25 mm in diameter with 1.0 mm thick. Mintage of these coin in Niobium is believed to be 19. Information on Niobium: Symbol: Nb, Atomic Number: 41, Atomic Weight: 92.90638, Density: 8.57 g/cc, Melting Point: 2477 degrees C. Niobium is a shiny silver-white metal which is ductile and stable in air at room temperature. The metal will slowly develop a bluish tinge when exposed to air for a long time, and will readily oxidize at temperatures above 200°C. Niobium is chemically similar to Tantalum and as a result these metals are difficult to separate from their ores. It has very good corrosion resistance to diluted acids and certain other corrosive chemicals however it is readily attacked by strong alkalis and hot concentrated acids. Niobium is used extensively in alloys for corrosion resistance, and in alloys for nuclear reactors. It is also used in body piercing jewelry due to its bluish color. The metal was given it's current name in 1950, prior to that it was called Columbium, a name that industry sometimes still uses to identify the metal. The country of issue, Catalog number (Scott is used unless indicated) and condition (including hinging) are all in the item title. If additional information is needed it will be included above this paragraph. CONDITION The stamps are in fine to very fine or better condition. Hinging or other damage is always noted. Please assume no damage unless noted. GUARANTEE All items are guaranteed authentic and as described. We are lifetime members of both the American Philatelic Society and the American Topical Society. DOMESTIC SHIPPING WE ALWAYS COMBINE SHIPPING ON MULTIPLE ITEMS PURCHASED IN THE SAME SERIES OF AUCTIONS OR SALES. PLEASE USE THE EBAY CART SYSTEM FOR MULTIPLE PURCHASES AND REQUEST A COMBINED SHIPPING TOTAL. We use media mail for philatelic books and periodicals. We use first class mail for everything else. All packages are shipped with tracking. We pack all items very well. OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES SHIPPING All our listed items for sale are now being handled by eBay International shipping. We do not see what is charged or how it is handled. Our duty is to ship it to a US address and eBay handles it from there. Please use the eBay cart system for multiple purchases and ask for a combined invoice. If you have any problems please feel free to message us through eBay.Please buy with confidence with thousands of prior satisfied customers. Thanks for looking! Powered by SixBit's eCommerce Solution

Price: 150 USD

Location: Waldport, Oregon

End Time: 2024-02-22T23:40:40.000Z

Shipping Cost: 12 USD