The Classification and Main Types of Meteorites
Many meteorites have been discovered over the years which, in many cases, can give an insight into the creation of the universe. All these meteorites can be grouped together by looking at the various characteristics they have in common, such as the structures of the different meteorites and the isotopic properties of the meteorites. When trying to classify meteorites, they are generally identified as one of the three main groups of meteorites: Iron, Stony and Stony-iron. Each group has its own properties which makes them unique to one another. These groups can be divided further more into smaller groups.
Iron meteorites
Iron meteorites originated from the core of asteroids and can be divided in to many groups depending on their characteristics: list groups
Group IIAB Iron meteorites have low concentrations of nickel compared to other iron groups. The structures vary from Hexahedrites to coarsest octahedrites. Hexahedrites have the lowest concentration of nickel in their structure. IIAB iron meteorites are thought to be highly reduced materials due to the absence of phosphates, low concentration of nickel and the occurrence of graphite [H]. Group IIIAB Iron meteorites are the largest group of Iron meteorites. Meteorites in this category have medium octahedrite structure (most common iron meteorite structure due to certain amount of Nickel concentration). IIIAB iron meteorites are thought to be oxidized materials due to the high abundance of phosphate [H]. Group IVA Iron meteorites are the third largest group and exhibits octahedrite structures. This group of meteorites has an unusually low ratio of Ir/Au. Apart from this the meteorites are not very volatile [H]. Group IVB iron...
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Volume 62, Issue 12, December 2007, Pages 1606–1611
A Collection of Papers Presented at the 4th International Conference on Laser Induced Plasma Spectroscopy and Applications (LIBS 2006)
[B] The Old Woman, California, IIAB iron meteorite
Howard PLOTKIN, Roy S. CLARKE, JR, Timothy J. McCOY, and Catherine M. CORRIGAN
[C] http://www.britannica.com.ezproxy.brad.ac.uk/EBchecked/topic/40454/ataxite
[D] http://giantcrystals.strahlen.org/africa/hoba.htm
[E] http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1978astd.nasa...57A
[F] http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2003TrGeo...1..325H
[G] John T. Wasson, Meteorites
[H] Davis, A. M. (Editor). Treatise on Geochemistry, Volume 1: Meteorites, Comets and Planets.
Amsterdam, NLD: Elsevier Science & Technology, 2006. P327-329.
http://site.ebrary.com/lib/brad/Doc?id=10179924&ppg=346
[x] http://www.spacerocksuk.com/Meteorites.html
...under H₂O-undersaturated conditions, water was structurally bound up to the greenschist facies and then at the start of anatexis the excess water maximized the amount of H₂O-undersaturated melt generated. Furthermore the dissolution of accessory minerals can provide melts with structural components which in turn give clues about melting history and melting conditions, even during rapid melting. The analysis and mass balance of trace elements found in the glasses and residual phases and melt extraction data, together provided evidence that significant amounts of LILE were retained in residual feldspars and biotite crystals up to a high degree of partial melting of the crustal protolith. This is interpreted as meaning that higher temperatures of partial melting are needed to more efficiently differentiate the crust in these mostly incompatible trace elements.
Chondrites are the most primitive rocks in the solar system. Chondrites are stony (non-metallic) meteorites that have not been modified due to melting or differentiation of the parent body. Chondrites are formed when dust and small grains that originated from the early solar system accreted to form asteroids. Chondrites represent 86% of meteorites that fall to Earth. An important diagnosing feature of chondrites is the presence of chondrules. Chondrules are millimeter sized round inclusions made primarily of olivine and pyroxene, and chondrules make up 20-80% of the volume of most chondrites. Chondrites are important to geochemistry because chondrites give insight on the composition and age of the early solar system, the presence of water on Earth, and possibly the origin of life.
Aluminum is the most abundant metallic constituent in the crust of the earth; only the nonmetals oxygen and silicon are more abundant. Aluminum is never found as a free metal; commonly as aluminum silicate or as a silicate of aluminum mixed with other metals such as sodium, potassium, iron, calcium, and magnesium. These silicates are not useful ores, for it is chemically difficult, and therefore an expensive process, to extract aluminum from them. bauxite an impure h...
The interior structure of Earth is chemically divided into an outer solid crust, the mantle, a liquid outer core, and a solid inner core. The core is largely composed of iron, along with nickel and silicon. Other lighter elements are usually in the crust.
It is also a continuing theory that perhaps an asteroid crashed into earth which caused a climatic and environmental changes causing dinosaurs are extinct. The asteroid is trusted to have made a huge depression in Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula. Asteroids are categorized into a number of types according to their spectra. C-type, includes more than seven five percent of known asteroids: tremendously dark; similar to carbonaceous chondrite meteorites; approximately the same chemical arrangement as the Sun minus hydrogen, helium and other volatiles; S-type, seventeen percent: relatively bright; metallic nickel-iron assorted with iron- and magnesium-silicates; M-type, most of the rest: bright; pure nickel-iron. There are also a dozen or so additional rare types.
“Between both our meteor fragments, we have an adequate amount of Reidite [the high-pressure Polymorph important in shock metamorphism], for a true assessment.” Boniface lights up his pipe, with a somber expression he places his feet on the desk, with the potential that he holds in his hands, he observes the sparkling qualities of the Reidite.
Comets and asteroids. They are some of the first celestial bodies that humans observed and truly thought about. From ancient cultures interpreting these near-Earth objects as signs of disaster, to 18th century Europeans studying their paths, to even the extinction of the dinosaurs, comets and asteroids have always been prevalent in the majority of Earth’s history. These objects have intrigued the human race for generations, and continue to do so today. These similar subjects of fascination have many unique and interesting characteristics and a rich history with Earth.
Cloud (1968) calls Banded Iron Formations, rhythmically banded chemical sediments of large, open water bodies that take different aspects but most characteristically consists of alternating layers of iron- rich and iron-poor silica. It is present in some of the oldest volcanic sequences (greenstone belts ca 2800 mya) and is a common sediment type formed until approximately 1800 mya. Although some younger formations with similar structure can be found there is great distinctions between them and the BIF’s of the Precambrian.
Iron is the fourth most abundant element in the Earth’s crust. Because it is so common, iron has been used by human society for thousands of years. Iron was known and used for weapons in prehistoric ages, the earliest example still in existence; a group of rusty iron beads found in Egypt, dates from about 4000BC. This period in history was given the name Iron Age because it was the time when people found ways to get iron and to use it for building tools and weapons.
The Rock Cycle The Rock Cycle is a group of changes. Igneous rock can change into
Scientists get a good idea of what asteroids are made of by studying them through telescopes. They can tell what an asteroid is made of by the color and brightness of the asteroid. A lot of asteroids that we have discovered are very dark and made of stone, but there are shiny ones that are made of nickel and iron.
It is composed of two elements; oxygen and sulfur. This mineral can either be white in colour, gray, brown, orange, green, red, pink, yellow, beige, or it can be colourless, and the streak that it leaves is white. Based on the Moh’s Hardness scale, Gypsum falls somewhere around the 2 margin. Its lustre is close to that of glass (in properties and in appearance), and is considered vitreous. The cleavage—where it breaks along its line of weakness—is 1,1 – micaceous ; 2,2 and its fracture is uneven. Gypsum is slightly flexible, has low hardness, where it can be scratched by a fingernail, and is sectile (can be cut with a knife). Gypsum is a sedimentary rock, meaning it was formed by cementation at the surface of the Earth near bodies of water; it causes the mineral (gypsum) to settle within the
By adding up to 2%,of carbon it makes the steel tough and strong. Although it’s tough and strong, it is able to bend. To make sure that the metal doesn’t rust, it has a zinc coating on it. Iron is 26 on the periodic table,and considered an “transition metal,” meaning that it is ductile and malleable, and conduct electricity and heat. ... “Some other elements that are similar to iron are cobalt and nickel. They are the only elements known to produce a magnetic field.” Zinc is 30 on the periodic table and it is also a transition metal like iron. “The first iron used by humans is likely to have come from meteorites.” A meteorite is a meteor that survives its passage through the earth's atmosphere such that part of it strikes the ground. More than 90 percent of meteorites are of rock, while the remainder consist wholly or partly of iron and nickel. Meteors are believed to have been from the asteroid belt of Mars and
Skornyakova, N.S., 1964. Dispersed iron and manganese in sediments of the Pacific ocean. International Geol. Rev., 7:2161-2174.
He would rush home to tell his wife about his findings. Jasmine believes his without a doubt. The couple was dumbfounded at how they were going to solve this problem. Michael and Jasmine would begin scouring the Internet to find out what would be the most effective way to get rid of the meteor. After hours of in depth research, they both would find that the best way to get rid of the meteor would be to blow it up. Now the couple would have to find a way to construct it. After all this they would find that a rocket would be the best way to destroy the meteor. They need to find an organization to help them construct the rocket.