chondrite
Sign in to saveA chondrite (, ) is a stony (non-metallic) meteorite that has not been modified by either melting or differentiation of the parent body. They are formed when various types of dust and small grains in the early Solar System accreted to form primitive asteroids. Some such bodies that are captured in the planet's gravity well become the most common type of meteorite by arriving on a trajectory toward the planet's surface. Estimates for their contribution to the total meteorite population vary between 85.7% and 86.2%.
Key facts
- Meteorite subdivision.Subdivision
- Type
- Meteorite subdivision.Name
- Chondrite
- Meteorite subdivision.Image
- NWA869Meteorite.jpg
- Meteorite subdivision.Image_caption
- A specimen of the NWA 869 chondrite (type L4–6), showing chondrules and metal flakes
- Meteorite subdivision.Compositional_type
- Stony
- Meteorite subdivision.Parent_body
- Small to medium asteroids that were never part of a body large enough to undergo melting and planetary differentiation.
- Meteorite subdivision.Petrologic_type
- 3–6
- Meteorite subdivision.Number_of_specimens
- Over 27,000
via Wikipedia infobox
Article
16 sectionsContents
- Origin and history
- Characteristics
- Chondrite classification
- Enstatite chondrites
- Ordinary chondrites
- Carbonaceous chondrites
- Kakangari chondrites
- Rumuruti chondrites
- Composition
- Petrologic types
- Presence of water
- Origin of life
- See also
- Notes
- References
- External links
A chondrite (, ) is a stony (non-metallic) meteorite that has not been modified by either melting or differentiation of the parent body. They are formed when various types of dust and small grains in the early Solar System accreted to form primitive asteroids. Some such bodies that are captured in the planet's gravity well become the most common type of meteorite by arriving on a trajectory toward the planet's surface. Estimates for their contribution to the total meteorite population vary between 85.7% and 86.2%.
Their study provides important clues for understanding the origin and age of the Solar System, the synthesis of organic compounds, the origin of life and the presence of water on Earth. One of their characteristics is the presence of chondrules (from the Ancient Greek χόνδρος chondros, grain), which are round grains formed in space as molten or partially molten droplets of distinct minerals. Chondrules typically constitute between 20% and 80% of a chondrite by volume.