Name: Earl
Status: other
Grade: 9-12
Location: NY
Country: USA
Date: Summer, 2011
Question:
Is there an instrument to locate a meteorite on the ground? If so at what distance?
Replies:
Dear Earl,
I am not sure. I do know that they are much more common than most
people think. Your best device would be a simple metal detector,
but get a good one designed for detecting gold. It would detect the
presence of iron, which is in many meteorites.
One suggestion is a meteorite stick, which is just a gold club with
its head removed and replaced by a magnet.
Also a camera and a GPS so you know exactly where and how you find a
meteorite!
Good luck. But also do not forget to look at the sky to see meteors
that appear often there!
Sincerely
David H. Levy
Since most meteorites are composed of iron, a common metal detector can
serve as a satisfactory meteorite detector.
Different models of different metal detectors have different levels of
power, so you can pick one of your own choice.
You might tune into "Meteorite Men" on the DISCOVERY and NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC
TV channels to see how it is done.
NEWTON is an electronic community for Science, Math, and Computer Science K-12 Educators, sponsored and operated by Argonne National Laboratory's Educational Programs, Andrew Skipor, Ph.D., Head of Educational Programs.
