Where do carbonaceous chondrites come from?
Most carbonaceous chondrites are thought to come from the low-albedo, C-type asteroids, which are the most abundant type between 2.7 and 3.4 AU (Bell et al., 1989), CM chondrites may be derived from an altered C-like asteroid called G-type (Burbine et al., 2002).
What is significant about the discovery of carbonaceous meteorites?
Carbonaceous chondrite, a diverse class of chondrites (one of the two divisions of stony meteorites), important because of the insights they provide into the early history of the solar system. They comprise about 3 percent of all meteorites collected after being seen to fall to Earth.
Why do some scientists suspect that carbonaceous chondrites could have been important to the formation of life on Earth?
Scientists from the study published in the journal Space Science Reviews note that these meteorites played “an important role in the primordial Earth’s water enrichment” because they facilitated the transportation of volatile elements that were accumulated on the external regions of the so-called protoplanetary disk …
Why are carbonaceous chondrite meteorites thought to be original material that formed in the early solar system?
They are thought to have been formed the farthest from the sun of any of the chondrites as they have the highest proportion of volatile compounds. Another of their main characteristics is the presence of water or of minerals that have been altered by the presence of water.
What are carbonaceous chondrites rich in?
Meteorites, Comets, and Planets Some carbonaceous chondrites are rich in carbon (CI and CM chondrites have 1.5–6% carbon), but others are not. Carbonaceous chondrites are now defined on the basis of their refractory elemental abundances, which equal or exceed those in CI chondrites.
Why are a class of meteorites named carbonaceous chondrites?
This group, named after the Ivuna meteorite (Tanzania), have chemical compositions that are close to that measured in the solar photosphere (aside from gaseous elements, and elements such as lithium which are underrepresented in the Sun’s photosphere by comparison to their abundance in CI chondrites).
Why are a class of meteorites called carbonaceous chondrites?
What is the difference between chondrites and Achondrites?
Chondrites are pre-planetary rocks, rocks that formed some 4.5 billion years ago directly from the proto-planetary disk of our Solar Nebula. Achondrites on the other hand are pieces of a differentiated planetary bodies, like the Moon or Mars.
What is the most expensive type of meteorite?
Brenham Meteorite Main Mass
The most expensive meteorite, according to the auction catalog, is the Brenham Meteorite Main Mass, and is expected to bring in 750,000 to 1.2 million dollars. The 1,433 pound specimen was found in 2005 in Kiowa County, Kansas.
What is the difference between and asteroid and a meteor?
An asteroid is a small rocky object that orbits the Sun. Asteroids are smaller than a planet, but they are larger than the pebble-size objects we call meteoroids. A meteor is what happens when a small piece of an asteroid or comet, called a meteoroid, burns up upon entering Earth’s atmosphere.
What kind of meteorite is a carbonaceous chondrite?
Carbonaceous chondrites or C chondrites are a class of chondritic meteorites comprising at least 8 known groups and many ungrouped meteorites. They include some of the most primitive known meteorites. The C chondrites represent only a small proportion (4.6%) of meteorite falls .
Why are carbonaceous chondrites rich in organic matter?
This class of chondrites originally was assumed to be rich in carbonaceous material because of the gray-to-black appearance of many of its members. Although some carbonaceous chondrites contain up to 2 percent carbon by weight in organic matter, others contain less carbonaceous material than some members of other classes of chondrite.
What makes a carbonaceous chondrite black in color?
Their dark gray or black coloration is due to a high percentage of magnetite dispersed in a matrix of dark silicates consisting of iron-rich olivine and pyroxene. This shows they formed under oxidizing conditions, yet there is no sign of aqueous alteration.
How did the CV chondrite get its name?
CV chondrites are named for the Vigarano meteorite that fell in Italy in 1910. They resemble ordinary chondrites and have large, well-defined chondrules of magnesium-rich olivine, often surrounded by iron sulfide, in a dark-gray matrix of mainly iron-rich olivine.
