STONY IRONS and IRON METEORITES

STONY IRONS: About 3% of all known Meteorites. there are basically two types of Stony-Irons:

Mesosiderites A mixture in roughly equal parts of Metal (Iron-Nickel) and Silicates (Pyroxene, Olivine, Plagioclase).

Pallasites: They contain crystallized, sometimes gemmy, grains of olivine within an Iron-nickel matrix.

IRON METEORITES: About 27% of all known Meteorites. Three main types and many sub-types:

Octahedrites: The most common, they contain 7% to 15% nickel and show a clear Widmanstatten pattern when etched.

Ataxites: They contain more than 15% nickel and show no Widmanstatten pattern.

Hexahedrites: They contain very little nickel and may show some parallel lines, the Neumann lines when etched.