Are new meteorites still being found?
Yes, thousands every year. The Meteoritical Society approved about 3,600 new meteorites in 2024 and nearly 2,000 in 2025, and each year's list typically includes a dozen or more witnessed falls.
Meteorite discovery is busier now than at any time in history. Each year the Meteoritical Society, which approves official meteorite names, adds thousands of new entries to its catalogue. In 2024 it approved about 3,600; in 2025, nearly 2,000. Most of these come from hot deserts in north-west Africa, Oman and Chile, and from scientific expeditions to Antarctica.
New falls, meteorites seen to arrive and then recovered, are much rarer but still happen regularly. Of the meteorites approved in 2025, 15 were witnessed falls. One British example is Winchcombe, which landed on a driveway in Gloucestershire in February 2021 and turned out to be a rare carbon-rich type. Better camera networks, doorbell and dashboard cameras, and quick public reporting have all made it easier to work out where fresh meteorites landed.
Astronomers have even begun spotting small asteroids before they hit. A handful of tiny asteroids have been seen in space just hours before striking the atmosphere, and meteorites from several of them were later collected on the ground. Linking a rock in the hand to an object tracked in space is a scientist's dream.
New finds also bring new kinds of meteorite. Fresh samples from the Moon, Mars and the asteroid Vesta turn up most years, along with occasional oddities that do not fit any known group. Each one adds detail to our picture of how the Solar System formed. Meteorites are falling all the time, so somewhere a new one is lying on the ground waiting to be noticed. If you hunt for them yourself, remember to ask the landowner first and check the local rules on collecting.