The Meteorite Hunters - Joshua Howgego *****

This is an extremely engaging read on a subject that everyone is aware of, but few of us know much detail about. Usually, if I'm honest, geology tends to be one of the least entertaining scientific subjects but here (I suppose, given that geo- refers to the Earth it ought to be astrology... but that might be a touch misleading). Here, though, there is plenty of opportunity to capture our interest.

The first part of the book takes us both to see meteorites and to hear stories of meteorite hunters, whose exploits vary from erudite science trips to something more like an Indiana Jones outing. Joshua Howgego takes us back to the earliest observations and discoveries of meteorites and the initial doubt that they could have extraterrestrial sources, through to explorations of deserts and the Antarctic - both locations where it tends to be easier to find them. I, certainly, had no idea about the use of camera networks to track incoming meteors, which not only try to estimate where they will end up, but also track them back to their orbits and consider where they came from in the first place. And there are even those who search for meteorites that are so small that they are simply part of the dust that accumulates, say, on the roof of a building.

I knew there were different types of meteorite, but not the breadth of varieties Howgego explains. Just when the accounts of expeditions could become a little samey, the book changes tack (appropriate term, as we will see) to look at what can be learned from meteorites and where the meteors that head our way came from. Remarkably, for example, the division of meteorites into two distinct types on one isotope provides support to theories about Jupiter's role in shaping the solar system, including the magnificently named Grand Tack theory. Similarly, examining meteorites has added complexity (if not reduced confusion) to the debate of where Earth's water came from.

One of the reasons this is an enjoyable book is that this is field where it's still possible to make significant individual contributions. In one sense Howgego has it easy, because in so many scientific fields now you have massive teams, and it's difficult to introduce the personal story that is so important to making scientific narrative approachable. Many historians of science now seem to despise the traditional approach of picking out individuals who make big contributions to science, but doing so makes it far easier to put across science in an effective fashion.

Perhaps my only complaint is that it was said rather too many times that some meteorites (carbonaceous chondrites) contain the building blocks of life, notably some amino acids. This is true, but in a sense misleading, in that all matter contains the building blocks of life, for example, in containing protons. There's an arbitrary dividing line being deployed here without justification. Oh, and there's no index, which is a shame.

A good popular science book should involve great storytelling - and that's exactly what Howgego does here.

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Review by Brian Clegg - See all Brian's online articles or subscribe to a weekly email free here