Meteorite, Rock, Mineral or Fossil Identification

Self-identification resources

Meteorites

One of the most common questions we get:

“Have I found a meteorite?”

The answer: Unlikely.

Meteorites are extremely rare.

On top of that, Missouri has a humid climate, dense vegetation and diverse seasons. These all work against meteorite preservation.

Context: Meteorites in Missouri

• Fewer than 30 meteorites have been found since 1807.
• Four hundred and sixty-five (465) Missouri residents have won jackpots of $1 million or more since 1987. Thus, 20 times as many people have won $1 million dollars in the Missouri Lottery as have found meteorites in Missouri.
• On average, you’re eight times more likely to die from a lightning strike in Missouri than to find a meteorite.

This is why we can almost conclusively say that you did not find a meteorite! We do not have a meteorite expert on our faculty. It is best to follow the self test resources provided for you in the next paragraph.

Self-test resources

If you’re a hopeless optimist and think you’ve found a meteorite, visit Dr. Randy L. Korotev’s Meteorite or Meteorwrong site.

• Begin with his DO THIS FIRST, self-test check-list.
• Review the Some Meteorite Realities.
• If you’re certain that you have a meteorite, follow his What to Do If You Think That You've Found a Meteorite.

Rocks, minerals and fossils

You’ve found an interesting rock, mineral or fossil. You’d like some identification help.

We encourage you to review Geology.com first.

• Rocks
• Minerals
• Fossils

The Missouri Geological Survey has a PDF brochure on rocks and minerals.

They also have a rock and mineral resource list with more pictures, descriptions and maps.

Key pointers

Sedimentary rocks underlie most of Missouri.

Unless you found your specimen in the St. Francois Mountains of southeastern Missouri, where there are red Precambrian igneous rocks, your rock is probably sedimentary.

Glacial erratics are the exception. These occur in northern Missouri where ancient glaciers deposited some igneous and metamorphic rocks eroded from the far northern U.S. and Canada.

The most common sedimentary rocks in Missouri are limestone, its cousin dolostone, also known as dolomite, and sandstone.

Chert is a common mineral associated with limestones and dolostones. Chert, of which flint is one type, is composed of the mineral quartz.

Chert will scratch glass and resist scratching from a steel nail.

Quartz also occurs commonly throughout the state.

Calcite is another common mineral that often occurs as crystals within limestone. Quartz will resist scratching from a steel nail. Steel will easily scratch calcite.

Troubles with identification

Unable to identify a rock, mineral, or fossil? We may be able to help you but due to the high volume of requests we receive, we must ask that all inquiries be made via email by carefully following the instructions below. We cannot identify samples over the phone and do not have the staff to handle drop-in or in-person inquiries.

Our geology faculty can identify about 95 percent of the specimens we receive by simply looking at detailed photos.

Send us an email with all of the following information:

• Two-to-three well-lit, sharply focused photos showing the specimen from various angles.
  • Include something in your photo that provides scale, such as a coin or ruler.
  • If the specimen has fresh, unweathered faces, include that portion of the specimen in your photo.
  • Please verify that your photos are well focused, visual details are sharp and well lit.
• When and where you found the specimen.
  Be as precise as possible. For example, “At 11 a.m. on June 6. At an outcrop next to U.S. 65 two miles south of the Evans Road exit between Springfield and Ozark.”

_{Please give us a few weeks to reply.}

_{If you send us dark, unfocused photos or fail to include some context about where and when the specimen was found we will not reply to your request.}

Donating and dropping off your specimen

•  Except in very rare cases, rock, mineral and fossil specimens have little to no monetary value. That does not mean that your specimen is not valuable to you! However, if you have a quality specimen that you no longer want to keep, it may have value within our teaching or research collections.
• We’re happy to accept specimens if you’re willing to donate them to our teaching and research collections. Please submit photos first to determine if we have a need for the possible donations.
• Do not drop off your specimen without first emailing us. We will not accept dropped off specimens for identification unless we are unable to identify the specimen through email.