5 Tips for Hunting Meteorites
A recent meteor seen as a fireball over the English Channel. (Source: ABC)
2023 has already been a very active year for meteors. In January, a fireball streaked across Europe before exploding over England. More recently, Texas residents were rattled by a loud boom in the Lower Rio Grande Valley before it was determined the explosion was a meteor breaking up. With multiple meteor showers projected for this April, you might be wondering how you can get a piece of the action. Here’s a list of tips to keep in mind if you decide to try some meteorite hunting yourself.
#1 Pick Your Spot
Before venturing out to search for meteorites, you have to know where to look. These rocks fall all over the world, but they’re easiest to identify somewhere with uniform terrain like a desert, making the western United States a hotspot for meteorite hunters. There’s also the question of whose land you’ll be searching on. Rules for taking meteorites from public land differ some based on jurisdiction, so if you want to be sure you’ll be able to keep what you find, making arrangements with the owner of some private land might be a safer bet. Do some research on some old strewn fields or check out somewhere a meteorite has recently been spotted.
The strewn field from the Chelyabinsk meteor. These are hotspots for finding meteorites. (Source: Meteorite Recon)
#2 Come Prepared
When it comes to meteorite hunting, your best tools are going to be your eyes. Look for any rock that seems out of place, especially one that’s darker than its surroundings. Beyond your eyes, you can invest in a metal detector to help you in your searches. Pure iron meteorites are rare, but most have at least some trace of metal. If you’re on a budget, you can simply fashion a magnet to a hiking stick and do your detecting that way. Bringing along a shovel is a good idea too since your meteorite could be embedded in the ground. Be ready to do some digging to get your prize!
#3 Safety First
Remember that working for hours out in the desert comes with its own risks. Treat your meteorite hunting as you would a long day hike. Bring water, sunblock, food, a first aid kit, and anything else you might need while you’re working. Gloves for digging through the dirt and handling rough meteorites is also a good idea, though the rocks themselves are perfectly harmless. Anything you’re going to find will have already cooled and will be safe to handle. Just make sure you have everything you need to be working in the hot sun.
Meteorite hunters at work (Source: Meteorite-hunter.com)
#4 Identifying Your Rock
So you found a rock that looks a little out of place, but is it a meteorite? Here’s some questions to ask. For one thing, is the rock black or a darker color? If so, this may have been produced from the heat of its atmospheric entry. Besides color, what is its texture, smooth to the touch or rough and porous? How does that compare to other rocks in the area? Is it magnetic at all? Ultimately, you won’t be 100% sure unless the rock is examined by a professional, but there’s a lot you can determine on your own in the field.
#5 Now What?
Once you’ve found a meteorite, the question is what are you going to do with it. Do some more research and figure out what exactly you’ve found. Then, you can display the meteorite in your home and start a collection, or see about selling it on the bustling meteorite market. Whatever you do with it, get back out into the field as soon as you can and see what else is out there waiting for you!
If you don't want to wait to get your hands on a meteorite, you can start your collection with something from Mini Museum here.
Featured Product
Boeing 747 - EI-BED Horizontal Stabilizer
Latest News
-
Mar 31, 2025 The Mysterious Dodecahedrons From Across Ancient Rome Read More -
Mar 26, 2025 The Crazy Story of How Star Wars Got Made! Read More -
Mar 26, 2025 Skin, Eggs, and Poop: Unique Types of Dinosaur Fossils! Read More -
Mar 24, 2025 Learn How Scientists Made Woolly Mice! Read More -
Mar 21, 2025 Organic Glass Found Among Remains of Roman Guard Read More -
Mar 19, 2025 The Top 5 Most Expensive Star Wars Collectibles Ever Sold Read More
Cool Things!
Learn How Scientists Made Woolly Mice!
Organic Glass Found Among Remains of Roman Guard
One of the most dramatic events in the history of the Roman Empire was the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE. It is unknown how many perished during the eruption and its fallout, however, haunting images of contorted Pompeiians frozen in time by searing gas and ash paints an image of hellish, alien conditions. In a bizarre twist of the otherworldly occurrence, scientists have found the only documented instance of a victim whose brain was turned to glass by flows from the eruption.
The Mysterious Origin of the St. Mark's Square Lion!
Keeping a watchful eye over what Napoleon knew as “the drawing room of Europe,” the winged lion of St. Mark’s Square in Venice, Italy, is a majestic sight. The origin of this iconic statue has been cloaked in mystery, but in September of 2024, a group of chemists, archaeologists, geologists, and art historians shed more light on this sculpture’s story.
Specimen Deep Dives
Returning to the Moon: The Apollo 14 Mission
The Secrets of the Space Shuttle: Learn about Mini Museum's Shuttle Tile Material!
Gondwana: When the Earth Was One
Long Form Articles
The Mysterious Dodecahedrons From Across Ancient Rome
The ancient Romans left behind architectural marvels, a rich philosophical tradition, and a complete pantheon of gods and heroes, but among their many relics, the Gallo-Roman dodecahedrons remain truly mysterious.
The Crazy Story of How Star Wars Got Made!
On May 14, 1971, George Lucas flew into London for the first time. For a while now, the young director had been workshopping ideas for a space opera, jotting down an increasingly long list of bizarre names for people and places he could build a story around. So when he landed in London, Lucas marched into the office of United Artists head David Picker and convinced the executive to provide the seed money for his next movie.
Skin, Eggs, and Poop: Unique Types of Dinosaur Fossils!
While their bones tend to be the most show-stopping examples, the dinosaurs actually left behind many different traces of their anatomy, many of which have been crucial to scientists’ understanding of their lives. Whether you’re looking to grow your collection or just starting out, here are 5 unique types of dinosaur fossils!