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Gas-rich meteorites are meteorites with high levels of primordial gases, such as helium, neon, argon, krypton, xenon and sometimes other elements. [1] Though these gases are present "in virtually all meteorites," [ 2 ] the Fayetteville meteorite has ~2,000,000 x10 −8 cc STP / g helium, [ 3 ] or ~2% helium by volume equivalent.
Most meteorites date from the early Solar System and are by far the oldest extant material on Earth. Analysis of terrestrial weathering due to water, salt, oxygen, etc. is used to quantify the degree of alteration that a meteorite has experienced. Several qualitative weathering indices have been applied to Antarctic and desertic samples.
This is a list of largest meteorites on Earth. Size can be assessed by the largest fragment of a given meteorite or the total amount of material coming from the same meteorite fall: often a single meteoroid during atmospheric entry tends to fragment into more pieces. The table lists the largest meteorites found on the Earth's surface.
Meteorites are sometimes, but not always, found in association with hypervelocity impact craters; during energetic collisions, the entire impactor may be vaporized, leaving no meteorites. Geologists use the term, "bolide", in a different sense from astronomers to indicate a very large impactor .
The Inuit used the Cape York meteorite for a much longer time. Iron meteorites themselves were sometimes used unaltered as collectibles or even religious symbols (e.g. Clackamas worshiping the Willamette meteorite). [15] Today iron meteorites are prized collectibles for academic institutions and individuals.
The exact worth of a meteorite varies depending on the specific type of meteorite in question. An 82-pound iron meteorite originating from an asteroid recently sold for $44,100 — about $540 per ...
Radiometric methods can be used to date different stages of the history of a meteorite. Condensation from the solar nebula is recorded by calcium–aluminium-rich inclusions and chondrules. These can be dated by using radionuclides that were present in the solar nebula (e.g. 26 Al/ 26 Mg, 53 Mn/ 53 Cr, U/Pb, 129 I/ 129 Xe).
In meteoritics, a meteorite classification system attempts to group similar meteorites and allows scientists to communicate with a standardized terminology when discussing them. Meteorites are classified according to a variety of characteristics, especially mineralogical , petrological , chemical , and isotopic properties.