RockCheck: Did I Find a Meteorite?
A camera-driven field guide that walks rock-hounds and curious homeowners through a 5-step check (magnetism, fusion crust, regmaglypts, density, weathering) and returns a calibrated confidence estimate along with the nearest accredited lab to send it to.
hobbyist rock collectors and homeowners who think they may have found a meteorite
- A 5-step guided checklist with photo prompts at each stage: magnet test, fusion crust look, regmaglypts, density, weathering
- A calibrated confidence score that reflects how many checks the rock passes
- A directory of accredited labs and universities that accept suspected meteorites, sorted by state or province
- A built-in streak-test guide and streak-plate recipe for at-home verification
The Hillsborough, NJ meteorite is only the second ever-recovered CM1/2 chondrite fall and reliably sends neighbors into their backyards searching; any viral meteorite news creates a short, intense spike of 'is this a space rock?' curiosity that no current tool serves well.
Hillsborough NJ meteorite is real and got major NYT/ABC/EarthSky coverage with follow-up amino acid research in Science Advances, confirming viral spikes occur — but baseline search volume for hobbyist meteorite ID remains a tiny niche.Meteorite that crashed into New Jersey home contains building blocks of life ↗
A 'Meteorite Identifier' app already exists on Google Play (com.meteorite.identifier) with generic AI-generated marketing copy, so the category isn't empty — RockCheck's structured 5-step + lab directory is differentiated but not uncontested.Meteorite Identifier - Apps on Google Play ↗Meteorite Identifier APK for Android Download ↗
GeoLabs charges $50/sample for photo evaluation and LMAC charges $500 for EPMA, proving people pay real money for expert verification — RockCheck could monetize via lab referrals or premium expert-review tiers, but addressable audience per spike is small.Geo Labs Preliminary Photo Evaluation ↗LMAC Analysis Services Price Schedule ↗
Meteorite falls are rare but recurring viral events (Hillsborough 2024, others) keep the curiosity cycle alive — hobby is perennial though baseline usage outside news spikes will be very thin.New Jersey Couple Aids Meteorite Discovery After it Crashes Through Their Home ↗
Most smartphones have magnetometer + camera, step-by-step UI is trivial, and lab directory is content; main risk is identification accuracy — a confident wrong answer is worse than no answer, so the 'calibrated confidence estimate' framing is critical.Easy Ways to Identify a Meteorite Using Your Mobile Phone ↗