Table Of ContentMETEORITE MINERALOGY
Meteoritesarefascinatingcosmicvisitors.Usingaccessiblelanguage,thisbookdocumentsthe
history of mineralogy and meteorite research, summarizes the mineralogical characteristics of
the myriad varieties of meteorites, and explains the mineralogical characteristics of Solar
System bodies visited by spacecraft. Some of these bodies contain minerals that do not occur
naturallyonEarthorinmeteorites.Thebookshowshowtorecognizedifferentphasesunderthe
microscope and in backscattered electron images. It summarizes the major ways in which
meteoritic minerals form – from condensation in the expanding atmospheres of dying stars to
crystallizationindeep-seatedmagmas,fromflashmeltinginthesolarnebulatoweatheringin
theterrestrialenvironment.Containingspectacularbackscatteredelectronimages,colorphoto-
graphsofmeteoriteminerals,andwithanaccompanyingonlinelistofmeteoriteminerals,this
bookprovides auseful resourcefor meteorite researchers,terrestrial mineralogists,cosmoche-
mists,andplanetaryscientists,aswellasgraduatestudentsinthesefields.
alan e. rubin is a meteorite researcher who recently retired from the University of
California, Los Angeles, where he worked as a research geochemist. He is a fellow of the
MeteoriticalSocietyandwinneroftheNiningerMeteoriteAwardandsevenGriffithObserver
science writing awards. He is the namesake of the garnet mineral rubinite and the main-belt
asteroid 6227Alanrubin. He is the author of more than 200 research papers and 50 popular
sciencearticles.HeisalsotheauthorofDisturbingtheSolarSystem(Princeton,2004).
chi ma is a mineralogist at the California Institute of Technology, with research interests in
nanomineralogyandthediscoveryofnewmineralsinmeteorites,especiallythoserepresenting
extremeconditionsofformation.Hehasdiscoveredandledinvestigationson47newminerals,
including 14 refractory minerals from the solar nebula and 11 high-pressure minerals. He is a
fellow of the Mineralogical Society of America. The oxide mineral machiite was named in
hishonor.Heistheauthorofmorethan100researchpapers.
CAMBRIDGE PLANETARY SCIENCE
SeriesEditors
FranBagenal,DavidJewitt,CarlMurray,JimBell,RalphLorenz,FrancisNimmo,SaraRussell
Booksin theSeries
1. Jupiter:ThePlanet,SatellitesandMagnetosphere†EditedbyBagenal,Dowling,and
McKinnon978-0-521-03545-3
2. Meteorites:APetrologic,ChemicalandIsotopicSynthesis†Hutchison978-0-521-03539-2
3. TheOriginofChondrulesandChondrites†Sears978-1-107-40285-0
4. PlanetaryRings†Esposito978-1-107-40247-8
5. TheGeologyofMars:EvidencefromEarth-BasedAnalogs†EditedbyChapman
978-0-521-20659-4
6. TheSurfaceofMars†Carr978-0-521-87201-0
7. VolcanismonIo:AComparisonwithEarth†Davies978-0-521-85003-2
8. Mars:AnIntroductiontoitsInterior,SurfaceandAtmosphere†Barlow978-0-521-85226-5
9. TheMartianSurface:Composition,Mineralogy,andPhysicalPropertiesEditedbyBell
978-0-521-86698-9
†
10. PlanetaryCrusts:TheirComposition,OriginandEvolution TaylorandMcLennan
978-0-521-14201-4
11. PlanetaryTectonics†EditedbyWattersandSchultz978-0-521-74992-3
†
12. ProtoplanetaryDust:AstrophysicalandCosmochemicalPerspectives EditedbyApaiand
Lauretta978-0-521-51772-0
13. PlanetarySurfaceProcessesMelosh978-0-521-51418-7
14. Titan:Interior,Surface,Atmosphere,andSpaceEnvironmentEditedbyMüller-Wodarg,
Griffith,Lellouch,andCravens978-0-521-19992-6
15. PlanetaryRings:APost-EquinoxView(Secondedition)Esposito978-1-107-02882-1
16. Planetesimals:EarlyDifferentiationandConsequencesforPlanetsEditedby
Elkins-TantonandWeiss978-1-107-11848-5
17. Asteroids:AstronomicalandGeologicalBodiesBurbine978-1-107-09684-4
18. TheAtmosphereandClimateofMarsEditedbyHaberle,Clancy,Forget,Smith,andZurek
978-1-107-01618-7
19. PlanetaryRingSystemsEditedbyTiscarenoandMurray978-1-107-11382-4
20. Saturninthe21stCenturyEditedbyBaines,Flasar,Krupp,andStallard978-1-107-10677-2
21. Mercury:TheViewafterMESSENGEREditedbySolomon,Nittler,andAnderson
978-1-107-15445-2
22. Chondrules:RecordsofProtoplanetaryDiskProcessesEditedbyRussell,ConnollyJr.,
andKrot978-1-108-41801-0
23. SpectroscopyandPhotochemistryofPlanetaryAtmospheresandIonospheres
Krasnopolsky978-1-107-14526-9
24. RemoteCompositionalAnalysis:TechniquesforUnderstandingSpectroscopy,Mineralogy,and
GeochemistryofPlanetarySurfacesEditedbyBishop,BellIII,andMoersch978-1-107-18620-0
25. Meteoroids:SourcesofMeteorsonEarthandBeyondEditedbyRyabova,Asher,and
Campbell-Brown978-1-108-42671-8
† Reissuedasapaperback
METEORITE MINERALOGY
ALAN E. RUBIN
UniversityofCalifornia,LosAngeles
CHI MA
CaliforniaInstituteofTechnology
UniversityPrintingHouse,CambridgeCB28BS,UnitedKingdom
OneLibertyPlaza,20thFloor,NewYork,NY10006,USA
477WilliamstownRoad,PortMelbourne,VIC3207,Australia
314–321,3rdFloor,Plot3,SplendorForum,JasolaDistrictCentre,NewDelhi–110025,India
103PenangRoad,#05–06/07,VisioncrestCommercial,Singapore238467
CambridgeUniversityPressispartoftheUniversityofCambridge.
ItfurtherstheUniversity’smissionbydisseminatingknowledgeinthepursuitof
education,learning,andresearchatthehighestinternationallevelsofexcellence.
www.cambridge.org
Informationonthistitle:www.cambridge.org/9781108484527
DOI:10.1017/9781108613767
©SimonMitton2021
Thispublicationisincopyright.Subjecttostatutoryexception
andtotheprovisionsofrelevantcollectivelicensingagreements,
noreproductionofanypartmaytakeplacewithoutthewritten
permissionofCambridgeUniversityPress.
Firstpublished2021
PrintedintheUnitedKingdombyTJBooksLimited,PadstowCornwall
AcataloguerecordforthispublicationisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary.
ISBN978-1-108-48452-7Hardback
CambridgeUniversityPresshasnoresponsibilityforthepersistenceoraccuracy
ofURLsforexternalorthird-partyinternetwebsitesreferredtointhispublication
anddoesnotguaranteethatanycontentonsuchwebsitesis,orwillremain,
accurateorappropriate.
For Dorene and Kang
Contents
Preface pagexiii
1 MineralsandMeteorites:HistoricalFoundationsandCurrentStatus 1
2 DefinitionsandExplications 44
3 BriefReviewofCrystallographyandCrystalChemistry 58
3.1 CrystalSystemsandSpaceGroups 58
3.2 MillerIndices 60
3.3 ChemicalBonding 61
3.4 CoordinationandPacking 63
3.5 Pauling’sRules 65
4 PropertiesofMinerals:ExplanationsandApplications 66
4.1 MajorPhysicalProperties 66
4.2 OtherPhysicalProperties 75
4.3 OpticalProperties 85
5 IdentificationofMeteoriticMineralsinReflectedLight,byBackscatteredElectron
Imaging,andbyEnergyDispersiveX-RaySpectroscopy,Wavelength-Dispersive
X-RaySpectroscopy,andElectronBackscatterDiffractionAnalysis 92
5.1 ReflectedLight 92
5.2 Backscattered-ElectronImagingwithEnergy-DispersiveX-RaySpectroscopy,
Wavelength-DispersiveX-RaySpectroscopy,andElectronBackscatter
DiffractionAnalyses 98
6 MeteoriteClassificationandTaxonomy 101
6.1 History 101
6.2 Taxonomy 103
7 MineralogyofMajorPhysicalComponentsofChondrites 109
7.1 Chondrules 109
7.2 Calcium-Aluminum-RichInclusions 116
7.3 AmoeboidOlivineInclusions 126
7.4 Plagioclase-OlivineInclusions 127
vii
viii Contents
7.5 DarkInclusions 127
7.5.1 DarkInclusionsintheAbeeEHChondrite 127
7.5.2 DarkInclusionsinCarbonaceousChondrites 128
7.6 Carbon-RichAggregates 129
7.7 MatrixMaterial 130
7.7.1 CIChondrites 130
7.7.2 CMChondrites 131
7.7.3 CRChondrites 133
7.7.4 COChondrites 133
7.7.5 CVChondrites 133
7.7.6 CKChondrites 134
7.7.7 UngroupedCarbonaceousChondrites 135
7.7.8 OrdinaryChondrites 136
7.7.9 RChondrites 137
7.7.10 EnstatiteChondrites 138
7.7.11 Kakangari 138
7.8 Carbide-MagnetiteAssemblages 139
7.9 OpaquePhasesandOpaqueAssemblages 139
7.9.1 OrdinaryChondrites 139
7.9.2 RChondrites 142
7.9.3 EnstatiteChondrites 142
7.9.4 Kakangari-likeChondrites 144
7.9.5 CarbonaceousChondrites 144
7.10 PresolarGrains 148
7.11 Calcium-Plagioclase-BearingClasts 149
7.12 EclogiticClasts 150
7.13 Impact-Melt-RockClasts 151
7.14 Impact-MeltPockets 152
8 PetrologicandMineralogicalCharacteristicsofMeteoriteGroups 153
8.1 Chondrites:UndifferentiatedMeteorites 153
8.1.1 OrdinaryChondrites 153
8.1.2 RChondrites(PrototypeRumuruti) 162
8.1.3 CarbonaceousChondrites 162
8.1.4 EnstatiteChondrites 170
8.1.5 Kakangari-LikeChondrites(PrototypeKakangari) 171
8.2 PrimitiveAchondrites 171
8.2.1 Ureilites(PrototypeNovo-Urei) 171
8.2.2 Brachinites(PrototypeBrachina) 172
8.2.3 AcapulcoitesandLodranites(PrototypesAcapulcoandLodran) 173
8.2.4 Winonaites(PrototypeWinona)andIABSilicates 174
8.3 AsteroidalAchondrites 175
8.3.1 Howardites,Eucrites,Diogenites 175
8.3.2 Angrites(PrototypeAngradosReis) 176
Contents ix
8.3.3 Aubritesa.k.a.EnstatiteAchondrites(PrototypeAubres) 177
8.3.4 UngroupedAchondrites 178
8.4 NonasteroidalAchondrites 182
8.4.1 LunarMeteorites 182
8.4.2 MartianMeteorites 182
8.5 IronMeteorites 183
8.5.1 MagmaticCCIrons 185
8.5.2 MagmaticNCIrons 186
8.5.3 Non-MagmaticNCIrons 188
8.5.4 UngroupedIrons 190
8.6 Stony-IronMeteorites 192
8.6.1 Pallasites 192
8.6.2 Mesosiderites 197
9 Cosmomineralogy 200
9.1 Mercury 200
9.2 Venus 202
9.3 Earth 204
9.4 Moon 206
9.5 Mars 215
9.6 Asteroids 221
9.6.1 Vesta 223
9.6.2 Ceres 224
9.6.3 Eros 225
9.6.4 Itokawa 226
9.6.5 Ryugu 227
9.6.6 Bennu 228
9.6.7 Psyche 229
9.7 Titan 230
9.8 CometsandKuiperBeltObjects 231
9.8.1 CometSpectroscopy 231
9.8.2 Stardust 234
9.8.3 InterplanetaryDustParticles 235
9.8.4 KuiperBeltObjects 235
10 FormationofMeteoriticMineralsinGas-andDust-RichEnvironments 239
10.1 CondensationinGaseousEnvelopesAroundEvolvedStars 240
10.2 CondensationintheSolarNebula 243
10.3 CrystallizationinCa-Al-RichInclusionMelts 246
10.4 CrystallizationinMeltedPortionsofAmoeboidOlivineInclusions 248
10.5 CrystallizationinChondruleMelts 249
10.6 ExsolutioninOpaqueAssemblagesduringtheCoolingofCa-Al-Rich
Inclusions 251
10.7 ExsolutionduringtheCoolingofChondrules 252
