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A meteorite is a portion of a meteoroid or asteroid that survives its passage through the atmosphere and hits the ground without being destroyed. [77] 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.
On stony meteorites, the heat-affected zone is at most a few mm deep; in iron meteorites, which are more thermally conductive, the structure of the metal may be affected by heat up to 1 centimetre (0.39 in) below the surface. Reports vary; some meteorites are reported to be "burning hot to the touch" upon landing, while others are alleged to ...
The mesosphere (/ ˈ m ɛ s ə s f ɪər, ˈ m ɛ z-, ˈ m iː s ə-,-z ə-/; [1] from Ancient Greek μέσος (mésos) 'middle' and -sphere) is the third layer of the atmosphere, directly above the stratosphere and directly below the thermosphere. In the mesosphere, temperature decreases as altitude increases.
Meteorites might look like boring bits of rock – but each one has a fascinating story. Curious Kids: what are meteorites made of and where do they come from? Skip to main content
Afterglow of the troposphere (orange), the stratosphere (blue) and the mesosphere (dark) at which atmospheric entry begins, leaving smoke trails, such as in this case of a spacecraft reentry. The mesosphere is the third highest layer of Earth's atmosphere, occupying the region above the stratosphere and below the thermosphere.
The composition of Earth bears strong similarities to that of certain chondrite meteorites, and even to some elements in the outer portion of the Sun. [42] [43] Beginning as early as 1940, scientists, including Francis Birch, built geophysics upon the premise that Earth is like ordinary chondrites, the most common type of meteorite observed ...
By studying the composition of meteorites that have landed over the years and the asteroids populating our solar system, astronomers have determined that about 70% of known meteorite impacts came ...
Meteoritics [note 1] is the science that deals with meteors, meteorites, and meteoroids. [note 2] [2] [3] It is closely connected to cosmochemistry, mineralogy and geochemistry. A specialist who studies meteoritics is known as a meteoriticist. [4]