"When you think of Bethel, Maine, you might think about the wonderful mountains surrounding the town, the beautiful colors in the fall, or a charming small town. There is, however, a secret hiding within the town that few people know about. It may seem odd to some, but there is one museum that houses the largest collection of lunar meteorites in the world," the Only In Your State says.

"When the owners saw the massive amount of minerals and gems that could be found in the western mountains of the state, they knew that something had to be done. If efforts were not made to preserve these beautiful pieces, then they would not remain in Maine. So the idea to showcase and educate the people about these geological wonders was formed and the museum opened in 2019.

"From the time you open the doors, you will undoubtedly agree that the museum is worthy of a world-class rating. The displays are beautifully illuminated with technology woven throughout each exhibit. Among all of the large rocks and the shiny gems, you will also find something a little more other-worldly. In the Space Rocks section of the museum, you will find the world's largest collection of lunar and martian meteorites."

"From an outsider's perspective , a museum that houses the five largest lunar meteorites may be as difficult to find as a space rock in a field. The Maine Mineral & Gem Museum that opens Thursday is located a bit off the beaten path, in the town of Bethel in western Maine," the CBS News reports.

"The 15,000-square-foot museum is displaying more than 100 gemstones, 2,000 minerals and 250 meteorites. It's one of the largest collections of meteorites from Mars and contains a third of the Earth's moon rocks. The museum's founders, Larry Stifler and Mary McFadden, began coming to western Maine in the 1970s. The Massachusetts couple became interested in the local mining history and bought a tract that included the Bumpus Mine, which had produced feldspar and the gemstone beryl.

"Most of the meteorites on display are from asteroids, but some are known to have fallen from the moon. They were sent hurling into space after asteroids hit the moon, creating the craters that dot its landscape. One of them weighs more than 120 pounds and is the largest piece of the moon that's ever been discovered on Earth."

"The town of Bethel, Maine with a population of under 3,000 is home to the unassuming, yet nevertheless, stunning Maine Mineral & Gem Museum (MMGM), which opened in 2019. The main exhibit hall takes a local approach to geology, with the official Maine state mineral, tourmaline, on display along with other locally-sourced minerals such as amethyst, beryl, quartz, and many others," the Atlas Obscura says.

"The MMGM also showcases a geological history of Maine, including the official state fossil, Petrica quadrifaria, believed to be one of the largest terrestrial plants of the Devonian period. The display also includes a collection of local minerals, fossils, and petrified wood from the pre-Cambrian era, through the Mesozoic era and Quaternary period.c

"Perhaps most notably, the small museum is home to both the largest piece of the moon ever to fall to Earth and one of the largest collections of lunar meteorites in the world. The largest known piece of the Vesta asteroid and the oldest igneous rock ever discovered in the solar system, are just a few other highlights of this world-class meteorite collection."

"From the world’s foremost collection of meteorites to the most extensive collection of Maine minerals and geologic specimens in the United States, MMGM tells the fascinating stories of our natural world," the Maine Mineral & Gem Museum Bethel, Maine says.

"Explore thousands of exquisite objects, from Maine to the Milky Way. MMGM collections – from minerals to meteorites to books, videos and more – are real-time subjects of critical research, informing and inspiring the scientific, creative, and educational communities of today and tomorrow.

"Learn why meteorites can teach us how our solar system was created, understand the dynamic process of how crystals are formed, and find out why Maine is home to some of the most incredible gemstones on planet Earth. Maine Mineral & Gem Museum’s special exhibits showcase new and relevant topics of interest from the worlds of mineralogy, meteorites, and more. See what’s new and coming up at MMGM."

"Those who can’t race to the moon can go to the next best place: Bethel, Maine. As odd as it sounds, this small town is home to arguably the best collection of lunar meteorites on earth," The Christian Science Monitor says.

"The Maine Mineral & Gem Museum (MMGM) holds the five largest pieces of the moon ever discovered – more than the world’s top 10 science museums combined, according to staff.

"The museum was founded by Larry Stifler and Mary McFadden, a philanthropist couple known for their conservation work in western Maine. The idea for MMGM traces back to 2005, when locals convinced the family to purchase the shuttered Bumpus Quarry Mine. Over several years, the couple’s humble plan to preserve the county’s mining heritage grew into a world-class research museum that explores the geological histories of Maine and our solar system."

"The Maine Mineral and Gem Museum is a geology museum located in Bethel, Maine. It displays a collection of rocks, minerals, and meteorites," Wikipedia says.

"The museum was formed from the possessions within Perham's Maine Mineral Store founded in 1919. Following the store's closure in 2009, Massachusetts-based philanthropists Lawrence Stifler and Mary McFadden bought the Perham collection. The museum then opened in 2019.

"As of 2021, the museum holds 57,781 specimens, with 37,940 of those being minerals. Notable specimens contained by the museum are:

• The largest chunk of the asteroid 4 Vesta on Earth.
• The largest displays of lunar and Martian meteorites in the world, including the largest piece of the Moon known to exist on Earth.
• Petrica quadrifaria, a fossil tree and Maine's state fossil.
• The largest known Martian meteorite, Taoudenni 002.
• The oldest known volcanic rock, Erg Chech 002.

"The Maine Mineral & Gem Museum is commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing by displaying some special moon rocks. Part of the commemoration includes unveiling the largest piece of the moon to fall to Earth at a special preview event on Friday in Bethel," the Maine Public says.

"The rock weighs in at 59 kilograms - or nearly 128 pounds. Other moon rocks are also at the museum. These rocks weren't collected by astronauts. They fell to earth as lunar meteorites.

"The Maine Mineral & Gem Museum, which will officially open later this summer, says it will house one of the world's foremost meteorite collections. It'll also have a comprehensive collection of gems and minerals unearthed in New England."

"After 12 years in the making, the Maine Mineral and Gem Museum in Bethel is getting ready for its grand opening Thursday, and it's about to unveil one of the largest collections of meteorites on Earth," the WGME says.

"This is the largest piece of the Moon that's ever been discovered on Earth," said Barbra Barrett in the middle of a tour. Barrett is the Executive Director of the museum. She says there are about 300 different meteorites on display in the "Space Rocks: The Stifler Collection of Meteorites" exhibit in what she calls a world class collection.

"The museum boasts one of the largest collections of Martian meteorites on earth and a third of all moon rocks on the planet. It is also home to the second largest piece of the asteroid Vesta and the oldest known igneous rock, which Barrett says is older than Earth."

"The Maine Mineral and Gem Museum is set to showcase massive chunks of the Moon that have crashed into the Earth as meteorites," the Fox News reports.

“They are lunar meteorites, they are not pieces of the Moon that were brought back, much like the Apollo missions, but they actually fell to Earth,” Barbra Barrett, the Museum’s director, told Fox News. The Museum in Bethel, Maine, is set to open in late summer. Ejected into space after asteroids struck the Moon, leaving craters on the lunar surface, the meteorites offer a fascinating glimpse into Earth’s natural satellite.

"The soon-to-be-open Museum says that it will be home to the four largest pieces of the Moon on Earth and house more of the Moon than the 10 largest natural history museums in the world combined. In total, its collection will contain 40,000 gems and minerals and 6,000 meteorites. In addition to chunks of the Moon, there are fragments of Mars and a piece of the asteroid Vesta in the museum's collection."