Jumat, 16 September 2011
Meteorites are divided into three main types according to their composition:
1. Stony meteorites
2. Iron meteorites
3. Stony Iron meteorites.
Stony meteorites are angular gray or brown stones, made up of stony minerals. They tend to be fairly smooth and often have a glassy back fusion crust, formed as the rock ablated in the atmosphere.
Iron meteorites contain 90% iron and 10% nickel, making them heavy for their size. Their surfaces can be black or rusty brown and are often pitted with thumbprint-shaped depressions.
Sunny iron meteorites bridge the stony and iron classifications. They have the coarsest surface, with crystals of olivine in a network of nickel-iron.
Iron meteorites contain 90% iron and 10% nickel, making them heavy for their size. Their surfaces can be black or rusty brown and are often pitted with thumbprint-shaped depressions.
Sunny iron meteorites bridge the stony and iron classifications. They have the coarsest surface, with crystals of olivine in a network of nickel-iron.
