Explore the meteorite record
Locate meteorites with recorded Earth coordinates, compare observed falls with later finds, and browse records whose location, mass, or year is not recorded. Missing information remains visible rather than causing the meteorite record to be discarded.
Data source:
NASA Open Data Portal — Meteorite Landings
(dataset gh4g-9sfh), based on records from The Meteoritical Society.
Global GIS map
32,186 map-ready meteorites
Missing mass or year does not remove a meteorite from the map. Those fields display as Not recorded.
Clusters summarize nearby records. Select a cluster to zoom in, or select one meteorite to inspect its evidence.
Basemap: OpenFreeMap / OpenStreetMap contributors. Data: NASA Open Data Portal, Meteorite Landings (gh4g-9sfh), based on records from The Meteoritical Society.
Preserved records
Meteorites with an unknown map location
A missing coordinate does not mean the meteorite did not exist. It only means this dataset cannot place it accurately on the map.
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| Name | Exact class | Fall / find | Mass | Recorded year | Why not mapped |
|---|
Separate location system
Off-Earth record
This record uses coordinates on Mars, so plotting it as an Earth longitude would be misleading.
Mars
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Analyze before explaining
Patterns in the supplied dataset
Counts describe this dataset. They do not automatically prove that meteorites fall more often in the places where many were recovered.
Observed falls compared with later finds
2.4% observed falls
How was each meteorite recorded?
What happens to the global pattern when you map only observed falls?
Can every record be placed?
Simplified composition groups
Exact classifications remain available in every record.
Ten heaviest map-ready records
| Name | Class | Mass | Fall / find | Year |
|---|
Student investigation
Build an evidence-based explanation
Use map evidence, not just prior knowledge. Record observations before reading the interpretation prompt.
Observe all mapped records
Identify at least three clusters or gaps. Describe what you see without explaining it yet.
Compare falls and finds
Switch between Observed falls and Later finds. Which patterns remain, disappear, or move?
Evaluate missing evidence
How could 13,529 unknown-location records affect a conclusion made from the map alone?
Write a CER
Claim: Does this map accurately represent where meteorites fall?
Reveal interpretation prompt
A mapped concentration can result from more meteorites, more searching, better preservation, easier recognition, more complete reporting, or several causes acting together. The dataset alone can reveal a pattern, but additional environmental and human-search layers would be needed to test specific explanations for that pattern.