Henbury Meteorites Conservation Reserve

A cluster of a dozen small craters made when an iron meteorite broke up over central Australia about 4,000 years ago.

Key facts

Where

near Alice Springs, Northern Territory, Australia

Kind

Visitor site

Visiting

Open-air site or visitor centre

South-west of Alice Springs, a group of about a dozen craters, the largest about 180 metres across, marks where an iron meteorite broke apart in the air and its pieces struck the ground about 4,000 years ago. Thousands of iron fragments, called Henbury in the catalogue, were collected around the craters in the 20th century.

The site is protected as a conservation reserve, and a walking trail leads around the craters. Collecting meteorites there is now forbidden. Henbury is a IIIAB iron.

Highlights

• Henbury iron fragments Iron, IIIAB

Related pages

Opening times, what is on display and access to research collections change over time, so check with the institution before you visit.