Does a chondritic asteroid have an iron core?

H chondrite have high total iron and high metallic Fe (15–20% Fe-Ni metal by mass), and smaller chondrules than L and LL chondrites. They are formed of bronzite, olivine, pyroxene, plagioclase, metals and sulfides and ~42% of ordinary chondrite falls belong to this group (see Meteorite fall statistics).
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What are chondritic meteorites made of?

Chondrites are broadly ultramafic in composition, consisting largely of iron, magnesium, silicon, and oxygen. The most abundant constituents of chondrites are chondrules, which are igneous particles that crystallized rapidly in minutes to hours.
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Do asteroids have iron cores?

They consist mainly of iron-nickel metal with small amounts of sulphide and carbide minerals. During the decay of radioactive elements in the early history of the solar system, many asteroids melted and the iron they contained, being dense, sank to the centre to form a metallic core.
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How are chondritic meteorites formed?

Like most meteorites, chondrites originated in the asteroid belt where collisions and gravitational perturbations put them into Earth-crossing orbits. (Ordinary chondrites, in particular, are from S-class asteroids.) Chondrites formed about 4.56 billion years ago as part of the formation of their parent asteroids.
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Do some meteorites contain iron?

Most meteorites contain at least some iron metal (actually an alloy of iron and nickel). You can see the metal shining on a broken surface. Meteorites without metal in them are extremely rare and they need to have some of the other characteristics of meteorites to be able to identify them as meteorites.
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EP06 Stony Meteorites



Can a meteorite be pure iron?

Natural metal meteorites are never pure iron, even the ones often called "iron meteorites". True, iron can be the major component, but there is always a significant fraction of nickel (4-30%), as described in this Washington University of St.
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What rare metal is found in meteorites?

More than 95% of all meteorites contain iron-nickel (FeNi) metal. As a consequence, meteorites have concentrations of nickel that are much greater than that of nearly any terrestrial rock. “Iron-nickel” means that the metal is mostly iron but it also contains 5-30% nickel.
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How does an asteroid or planet obtain an iron core?

They got iron from meteorites.
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What metals are found in meteorites?

Most "iron" meteorites are iron-nickel alloy with a few scattered inclusions of sulfide minerals. The alloys are 5 to 12 percent nickel, with traces of cobalt, chromium, gold, platinum, iridium, tungsten and other elements that dissolved in the molten iron and traveled with it to the parent body's tri.
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Why are chondritic meteorites so important?

Why are chondritic meteorites so important? They are undifferentiated, and preserve evidence about the age and nature of condensation in the ancient solar nebula. Chondrites are thought to be the oldest material in the Solar System and show the primeval composition of the solar nebula.
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Are iron meteorites rare?

Although they are fairly rare compared to the stony meteorites, comprising only about 5.7% of witnessed falls, iron meteorites have historically been heavily over-represented in meteorite collections. This is due to several factors: They are easily recognized as unusual even by laymen, as opposed to stony meteorites.
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How much iron is in a meteorite?

Iron meteorites typically consist of approximately 90 to 95% iron, with the remainder comprised of nickel and trace amounts of heavy metals including iridium, gallium and sometimes gold.
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Are iron meteorites valuable?

Common iron meteorite prices are generally in the range of US$0.50 to US$5.00 per gram. Stone meteorites are much scarcer and priced in the US$2.00 to US$20.00 per gram range for the more common material.
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Why are meteorites made of iron?

Iron meteorites are really composed of iron and nickel and are extremely dense. They are pieces of the cores of asteroids. Early in Solar System history, asteroids melted and the dense iron-nickel metal sank to the center to form a core - much like the Earth has a core.
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Is silver found in meteorites?

Abstract. The isotopic composition of silver in the metal phase of several types of iron meteorites has been determined. The ratios of 107 Ag 109 Ag are found to range from the terrestrial value of 1.09 to 9.2.
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How strong is meteorite metal?

The average mechanically-measured stony meteorite compressive strength is 200 MPa, while the average iron meteorite compressive strength is 430 MPa.
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Is gold found in meteorites?

The reported gold contents of meteorites range from 0.0003 to 8.74 parts per million. Gold is siderophilic, and the greatest amounts in meteorites are in the iron phases. Estimates of the gold content of the earth's crust are in the range ~f 0.001 to 0.006 parts per million.
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Does meteorite iron rust?

Meteorite is composed of iron (and nickel), which means that it does have the potential to form rust. However, if your meteorite jewelry is worn on a regular basis, rust should not be a problem, and it can always be cleaned if needed.
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What element is commonly found in meteorites?

Stony MeteoritesStony meteorites are made up of minerals that contain silicates—material made of silicon and oxygen. They also contain some metal—nickel and iron. There are two major types of stony meteorites: chondrites and achondrites.
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Is Earth the only planet with a molten core?

Summary: Researchers working with high-precision planetary radars have discovered strong evidence that the planet Mercury has a molten core.
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Does Venus have a metal core?

The density of Venus is only a little less than the density of Earth. This means that Venus probably has a core of metal about 3,000 km across, surrounded by a 3,000 km thick mantle and a 50 km thick crust.
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How do you tell if a rock has iron in it?

Streak: if you scratch a meteorite on an unglazed ceramic surface, it should not leave a streak. A dense rock that leaves a black or red streak probably contains the iron minerals magnetite or hematite, respectively, neither of which are typically found in meteorites.
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Is there quartz in meteorites?

Meteorites do not contain any substantial amount of quartz, whereas quartz is common in many terrestrial rocks. Quartz is harder than any of the common minerals in meteorites. Quartz is so hard that it will easily make a deep scratch in glass.
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