Meteorites For The Beginner - By: David Spates

A meteorite by definition is a foreign rock that is not from our earth that makes it to earth, meaning that it does not burn up in the earths atmosphere. Rocks that are zooming around in space are called meteoroids, when the meteoroid enters the atmosphere of the earth it begins to glow and burn up, and then it is known as a meteor.

Mot many meteors make it past earths atmosphere, almost all of them will wind up burning up before they hit the surface. The few that do make it then turn to meteorites, which can be a very valuable souvenir. It is estimated that about 500 meteorites make it to the surface of the earth every year, out of those 500 hundred only about 10 percent are recovered. This is just an estimate, it could be way off and it probably is.

Meteorites can tell us a whole lot when they are in the right hands, such as a scientist that studies them. If we recover a meteorite from Venus, we can then learn a great deal about that planet just by analyzing what the rock is made from. Meteorites from planets in our solar system are thought to be extremely rare, as most of the meteorites that we recover are from the asteroid belt that lies in between mars and Jupiter.

Meteorites that make it to the surface of the earth can range in many sizes, from a marble to the size of a balloon, and much larger. The best place to look for meteorites would be dry lake beds, rocky deserts, or other places that bigger meteorites have made an impact in the past, like huge meteorite craters in Arizona, Texas, Nevada and any other places that a meteorite crater would be.

There are three types of common meteorites, these are chondrules, which is the most common of the three, achondrites, and iron meteorites which are the rarest of the three. There are rare angrite meteorites, which have been thought to come from the planet mercury, but it is not yet completely proven yet. Tektites are not meteorites, but they are the result of the impact from a meteorite, they are covered with small crystals and can be just as valuable as meteorites.

Not only are meteorites great treasures that can be sold for a good chunk, but they can also be made into jewelry. The most common type of meteorite jewelry out there is the pendant, which has become quite popular among many people.

Meteorites can also be made into finger rings and ear rings. If you weigh a meteorite by grams and ounces in most cases it is worth more than gold, so if you ever happen to find one then consider yourself very lucky.

A meteorite by definition is a foreign rock that is not from our earth that makes it to earth, meaning that it does not burn up in the earths atmosphere. Rocks that are zooming around in space are called meteoroids, when the meteoroid enters the atmosphere of the earth it begins to glow and burn up, and then it is known as a meteor.

Dave Spates has been collecting meteorites and studying them for years. If you are interested in purchasing some meteorites then please visit his site. meteorites for sale.