How are meteorites classified?
Meteorites are often divided into three overall categories based on whether they are dominantly composed of rocky material (stony meteorites), metallic material (iron meteorites), or mixtures (stony–iron meteorites).
How are stony meteorites classified?
Stony meteorites, which are the most abundant kind of meteorite, are divided into two groups: chondrites and achondrites. Chondrites are physically and chemically the most primitive meteorites in the solar system. Achondrites, on the other hand, were all produced by melting of their parent bodies.
How is a meteorite defined?
meteorite, any fairly small natural object from interplanetary space—i.e., a meteoroid—that survives its passage through Earth’s atmosphere and lands on the surface. In modern usage the term is broadly applied to similar objects that land on the surface of other comparatively large bodies.
What are the three main classifications of meteorites?
More than 60,000 meteorites have been found on Earth. Scientists have divided these meteorites into three main types: stony, iron, and stony-iron.
How do you identify achondrites?
If it is a breccia that contains iron-nickel metal, then it is a meteorite. Some brecciated achondrites contain iron-nickel metal, but not much, although in a few metal can be seen on a sawn face or as rusty spots.
What type of rock are meteorites?
stony meteorites
The majority of meteorite finds are stony meteorites, consisting mostly of silicate minerals. There are two main types of stony meteorite: chondrites (some of the oldest materials in the solar system) and achondrites (including meteorites from asteroids, Mars and the Moon).
How much are meteorites worth per pound?
Meteorites are quite valuable, worth as much as $1,000 per gram, according to the LiveScience website. Kellyco Metal Detectors posted on eBay that it can sell for $300 per gram or more — meaning 1 pound could be worth $1 million. “Meteorites are rarer than gold, platinum, diamonds or emeralds.
What are the characteristics of meteorites?
Many meteorites have iron or nickel in them, so they are heavier (and denser) than Earth rocks. Some meteorites have pits (regmaglypts) on the outside, which look like deep thumbprints. Meteorites are not bubbly, and do not have holes. Meteorite are usually not round.
What characteristic distinguishes a meteorite from a terrestrial rock?
Meteorites tend to look different from the ordinary terrestrial rocks around them. They do not contain the common earth mineral quartz, and in general do not contain vesicles. When gas escapes from cooling molten material, it creates small pinprick holes or cavities in a rock’s surface.