Recommended kit
The tools that make meteorite hunting, testing, preparing and sky-watching easier, with what each one is for. You do not need most of them to start: a strong magnet, a tile and a notebook will take you a long way. Each link searches Amazon UK, so you can compare makers and prices yourself.
As an Amazon Associate, Howardites earns from qualifying purchases. Links marked “on Amazon UK ↗” open a search there in a new tab; prices and stock are Amazon’s and change.
Under 18? Ask a parent, carer or teacher before buying anything. Cutting, grinding and etching are adult work: each of those tools is shown with the safety gear it needs and a warning.
Meteorite hunting
What to carry on a search. Always get the landowner's permission first, and check the rules where you are.
Strong neodymium magnet on a stick
Most meteorites contain iron-nickel metal, so a strong magnet on a pole lets you sweep the ground and test likely stones without bending down hundreds of times.
Search on Amazon UKMagnet pen
A pocket-sized rare-earth magnet for a quick pull test on a single stone, in the field or at home. Keep strong magnets away from bank cards, phones and pacemakers.
Search on Amazon UKMetal detector suited to meteorites
A high-frequency or pulse-induction detector with ground balance picks up iron meteorites and metal-rich chondrites buried a few centimetres down, even in iron-rich soil. In the UK you need the landowner's permission, and detecting on protected ancient monuments is a crime.
Search on Amazon UKHandheld GPS or phone mount
The exact spot where a meteorite lay is part of its scientific record, so mark every find; a handheld GPS keeps working without phone signal, and a mount keeps your phone's map in view.
Search on Amazon UKSample bags and labels
Bag each find on its own with a label giving the date, place and finder, so pieces never get mixed up and their story stays with them.
Search on Amazon UKNitrile gloves
Salt and oils from skin speed up rusting and can spoil a fresh fall for scientists, so handle finds in clean gloves. Nitrile also resists the chemicals used in etching.
Search on Amazon UK
Testing
Simple, safe checks for a possible meteorite at home, before you ask a museum to look at it.
Unglazed streak plate
Rubbing a rock on rough white porcelain shows the colour of its powder: a red-brown streak means hematite and a black one magnetite, while most meteorites leave little or none.
Search on Amazon UK10x or 20x jeweller's loupe
Magnifies fusion crust, chondrules and flecks of metal on a broken face; a 10x loupe is easiest to hold steady, and 20x shows finer detail.
Search on Amazon UKDigital scale reading to 0.01 g
An accurate mass is the first step in working out density, which is one of the best clues that a rock is a meteorite.
Search on Amazon UKSmall calipers
Measure a stone's length, width and thickness in millimetres for its record and for scale in photographs.
Search on Amazon UKDensity kit for a scale
A frame that holds the stone in water on top of a scale, so you can weigh it in air and in water and find its density: stony meteorites are about 3.0 to 3.7 g/cm³, irons about 7.5 to 8.
Search on Amazon UK
Preparation
Cutting, polishing and etching are adult work with real hazards. Every item that cuts, grinds or etches is listed with the safety gear it needs.
Lapidary trim saw
A small wet saw with a thin diamond blade opens a stone to show chondrules and metal while wasting as little as possible.
Search on Amazon UKSafety first: Adults only. Keep fingers well away from the blade, never wear gloves, loose sleeves or a dangling cord near a spinning blade, keep the coolant topped up, and switch off at the wall before touching the blade.
Wear and use with it:
Safety goggles
Close-fitting goggles marked EN 166 stop chips, grit and spray reaching your eyes.
Search on Amazon UKEar defenders
A lapidary saw is loud enough over a long session to damage hearing.
Search on Amazon UKFFP3 dust mask
Filters the fine rock and grit dust made by sawing and grinding, which can harm your lungs.
Search on Amazon UK
Diamond blades
Thin, continuous-rim diamond blades cut meteorites cleanly; a thinner blade turns less of the meteorite into dust.
Search on Amazon UKSafety first: Adults only. Keep fingers well away from the blade, never wear gloves, loose sleeves or a dangling cord near a spinning blade, keep the coolant topped up, and switch off at the wall before touching the blade.
Wear and use with it:
Safety goggles
Close-fitting goggles marked EN 166 stop chips, grit and spray reaching your eyes.
Search on Amazon UKEar defenders
A lapidary saw is loud enough over a long session to damage hearing.
Search on Amazon UKFFP3 dust mask
Filters the fine rock and grit dust made by sawing and grinding, which can harm your lungs.
Search on Amazon UK
Silicon carbide grit set
Grinding on a flat glass plate with coarse, then finer grit removes saw marks step by step until the surface is ready to polish.
Search on Amazon UKSafety first: Adults only. Always work wet to keep dust down: rock, meteorite and grit dust must not be breathed in. Wear eye protection, and wipe up dried slurry with a damp cloth rather than sweeping it.
Wear and use with it:
Safety goggles
Close-fitting goggles marked EN 166 stop chips, grit and spray reaching your eyes.
Search on Amazon UKFFP3 dust mask
Filters the fine rock and grit dust made by sawing and grinding, which can harm your lungs.
Search on Amazon UK
Polishing pads
Diamond pads in rising grades, used wet, take a ground face to a mirror finish that shows metal grains and crystals clearly.
Search on Amazon UKSafety first: Adults only. Always work wet to keep dust down: rock, meteorite and grit dust must not be breathed in. Wear eye protection, and wipe up dried slurry with a damp cloth rather than sweeping it.
Wear and use with it:
Safety goggles
Close-fitting goggles marked EN 166 stop chips, grit and spray reaching your eyes.
Search on Amazon UKFFP3 dust mask
Filters the fine rock and grit dust made by sawing and grinding, which can harm your lungs.
Search on Amazon UK
Etching supplies (ferric chloride)
Etching a polished iron meteorite eats away its two nickel-iron alloys at different speeds, bringing out the criss-cross Widmanstätten pattern.
Search on Amazon UKSafety first: Adults only, never children. Work outdoors or by an open window with a fan blowing fumes away, keep a bowl of clean water and baking soda beside you, and store the etchant locked away from children and pets. In the UK, members of the public need a Home Office licence to buy or keep nitric acid stronger than 3%, which is why we list ferric chloride.
Wear and use with it:
Chemical splash goggles
Indirectly vented goggles rated for liquid splashes (EN 166 with the 3 mark) protect your eyes from etchant.
Search on Amazon UKNitrile gloves
Salt and oils from skin speed up rusting and can spoil a fresh fall for scientists, so handle finds in clean gloves. Nitrile also resists the chemicals used in etching.
Search on Amazon UKVentilation: a fume extractor fan
A fan beside the work draws fumes away from your face; better still, work outdoors or by an open window.
Search on Amazon UK
Airtight storage box
Rust needs water, so keeping cut irons and metal-rich stones sealed away from damp air is the best way to stop them rusting.
Search on Amazon UKIndicating silica gel desiccant
Soaks up moisture inside a storage box and changes colour when it is full, so you know when to dry it out again.
Search on Amazon UKRenaissance-style microcrystalline wax
A thin coat of microcrystalline wax on a cut, dry face keeps moist air off the metal without yellowing over time.
Search on Amazon UK
Storage and display
Keep each specimen safe, dry and labelled, so its record never gets separated from it.
Riker mounts
Shallow glass-topped boxes with a soft pad hold a meteorite still and visible, and protect it from fingers and dust.
Search on Amazon UKGem jars
Small clear jars with foam inserts suit tiny fragments and micrometeorites that would otherwise be lost.
Search on Amazon UKDisplay cases
A closed case keeps dust and damp off a collection on show; add a sachet of desiccant for irons.
Search on Amazon UKSpecimen labels
Acid-free labels in pencil or archival ink record name, class, mass, where and when found, and where it came from, which is what gives a specimen its value to science.
Search on Amazon UK
Observing
Meteor showers need nothing but your eyes, a dark sky and patience. These make a long night more comfortable.
Binoculars
You watch meteors with your eyes alone, but 7x50 or 10x50 binoculars show the lingering trails of bright meteors, comets, the Moon's craters and star clusters.
Search on Amazon UKRed torch
Red light lets you read a map or notebook without losing your night vision, which takes 20 minutes or more to build up.
Search on Amazon UKReclining chair
Meteors appear all over the sky, so lying back lets you watch a wide area for hours without a stiff neck.
Search on Amazon UKStar maps
A star atlas helps you find a shower's radiant and tell which meteors belong to the shower and which are random.
Search on Amazon UK
Books and learning
For beginners who want to go further than meteors.
A beginner's telescope
A small reflector or refractor on a simple mount shows the Moon's craters, Jupiter's moons and Saturn's rings. Never point a telescope or binoculars anywhere near the Sun.
Search on Amazon UKPlanisphere for UK latitudes
A rotating star chart shows which stars are up at any date and hour; choose one made for about 51° north for the UK.
Search on Amazon UKA beginner's guide to the night sky
A good guidebook explains constellations, planets and what to look for each month.
Search on Amazon UK
As an Amazon Associate, Howardites earns from qualifying purchases. Links marked “on Amazon UK ↗” open a search there in a new tab; prices and stock are Amazon’s and change.
Before you buy
- Start simple: a magnet, an unglazed tile, kitchen scales and a notebook cover most first checks, and the rock checker walks you through them.
- Never cut, grind, etch or wash a rock you hope is a meteorite until a museum or university has seen it: these steps destroy evidence.
- Search with the landowner's permission, and read meteorite law by country before you sell or export anything.
Hunting and collectingHave I found a meteorite?Meteor-shower plannerCaring for meteorites