Usually we don't think of astronomy in tactile terms. Even if you see meteorites in museums, you can't touch them. So, we just look. But there is a way to have a tiny piece of the cosmos and you can obtain it by yourself for free.

      Meteorites are some of the oldest rocks in the solar system, in fact they are leftovers from the formation of planets. Most are older than any rocks on Earth and though they may have collided and broken up a bit, they have not suffered the weathering that rocks here on Earth do. There is a large meteor belt between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. Some meteorites were once comets and could have come from as far away as beyond Pluto in a place called the Oort comet cloud.

      It is actually quite difficult to tell an Earth rock from a meteorite. They are dark coloured and dense but otherwise just look like a rock. Scientists who collect meteorites generally go to distant Antarctica to look for them. There, the ground is snow and ice and meteorites can more easily be spotted, and there is no competition with terrestrial rocks for identification!

      Since few of us either have the desire or budget to go to Antarctica, we must find another way to collect our piece of the cosmos. The answer is meteorite dust, which falls to Earth in abundance.

      Each year, tons of meteorite particles and dust fall to Earth. The pieces are so small, and fall so far apart that we don't seem them coming down like snow, but they do fall, and it is possible to collect them. To do so, you will need a fairly large plastic or  aluminum container several inches deep, a magnet and a plastic bag.

      You will want to place the container somewhere high up, as high as possible, but reasonably within easy reach. The reason for height is to avoid as much terrestrial dust (kicked up by cars and other things,) as possible. Also, for obvious reasons, don't put the container under a tree or other obstruction! Fill the container with several inches of water. You will need to leave the container in place for three or four weeks and you must check it every few days to add water if necessary. In hot weather it is surprising how quickly the water evaporates.

      After three or four  weeks (the longer the better,) bring your container down and place it on a table. All of the sediment and dust you see in the water is not meteorite dust.  To separate meteorite dust from terrestrial sediment you will need the magnet. Meteorites have a lot of iron in them and are therefore attracted to magnets. Place the magnet in the plastic bag.

      Slowly move the magnet around the water, making sure to stir up any sediment lying on the bottom. Get another bowl with some water in it and when you remove the magnet from the first container, place it in the bowl. Now remove the magnet from the plastic bag. Anything which had been clinging to the magnet through the plastic bag will now fall into the bowl.

      You will not likely get more than a few sand grain sized pieces, but what you do get is almost definitely meteorite dust. We are approaching the Perseid Meteor shower which peaks the week of August eleventh and so chances are better for a higher yield than normal. Your cosmic dust is likely over four billion years old and may have come from as far away as beyond Pluto! From that distance, the Sun merely becomes just another star in the sky.