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It's an August day in Santa Filomena, Brazil.

A group of women have just emerged on a dusty red field, excitedly clutching something they've just found.

Just days before, a bright fireball appeared in the skies above

and hundreds of meteorite fragments rained down over the city.

The palm-sized black rock they're holding

might look pretty unremarkable,

but its value both scientifically and commercially

is highly sought after.

So when meteorites crash to Earth,

a race to find them begins.

As soon as something falls, it's a get-up and go time. It's a high.

It's unlike anything that it was back in the day. People are beginning to fight for the better

ones. We are scientists and we have no enough money to compete with them.

In this program, we'll hear from meteorite hunters, dealers and scientists from all over the world

about how interest and demand for these space rocks has boomed over the years.

It's led to a lucrative trade. Is that at a cost to science

and those looking to study them? It's really, really difficult to explain the level of

excitement and accomplishment that I feel when I find a meteorite,

there's really just nothing like it.

You know, I get shaky every time.

You're touching this thing that's older than all of the planets,

...