Tektites (from Ancient Greek τηκτός (tēktós) 'molten') are gravel-sized bodies composed of black, green, brown or grey natural glass formed from terrestrial debris ejected during meteorite impacts. The term was coined by Austrian geologist Franz Eduard Suess (1867–1941), son of Eduard Suess.[note 1][1] They generally range in size from millimetres to centimetres. Millimetre-scale tektites are known as microtektites.[2][3][4]
Tektites are characterized by:
- a fairly homogeneous composition
- an extremely low content of water and other volatiles
- an abundance of lechatelierite
- a general lack of microscopic crystals known as microlites
- not having a chemical relationship to the local bedrock or local sediments
- their distribution within geographically extensive strewn fields
Cite error: There are <ref group=note> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=note}} template (see the help page).
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
springerwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ French, B. M. (1998) Traces of Catastrophe: A Handbook of Shock-Metamorphic Effects in Terrestrial Meteorite Impact Structures. LPI Contribution No. 954. Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston, Texas. 120 pp.
- ^ McCall, G. J. H. (2001) Tektites in the Geological Record: Showers of Glass from the Sky. The Geological Society Publishing House, Bath, United Kingdom. 256 pp. ISBN 1-86239-085-1
- ^ Montanari, A., and C. Koeberl (2000) Impact Stratigraphy. The Italian Record. Lecture Notes in Earth Sciences Series no. 93. Springer-Verlag, New York, New York. 364 pp. ISBN 3540663681