Pyroxene pallasite grouplet

Pyroxene pallasite grouplet
— Grouplet —
TypeStony-iron
ClassPallasite
CompositionMeteoric iron, silicate minerals (pyroxene)
Total known specimens2

The pyroxene pallasite grouplet is a subdivision of the pallasite meteorites (stony-irons).[1]

The grouplet is named "pyroxene pallasites" because they are the only pallasites that contain pyroxene. The grouplet was proposed in 1995.[2] It currently has only two members: the Vermillion and Yamato 8451 meteorite. Both meteorites contain pyroxene and have a number of other similarities: for example their pyroxene composition, rare-earth element concentrations, and oxygen isotope ratios. However, there are also indicators against the grouping of these two meteorites: for example the texture and occurrence of cohenite in the Vermillion meteorite and the differing siderophile trace element concentrations.[2]

  1. ^ M. K. Weisberg; T. J. McCoy, A. N. Krot (2006). "Systematics and Evaluation of Meteorite Classification" (PDF). In D. S. Lauretta; H. Y. McSween, Jr. (eds.). Meteorites and the early solar system II. Tucson: University of Arizona Press. pp. 19–52. ISBN 978-0816525621. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
  2. ^ a b Boesenberg, Joseph S.; Davis, Andrew M.; Prinz, Martin; Weisberg, Michael K.; Clayton, Robert N.; Mayeda, Toshiko K. (1 July 2000). "The pyroxene pallasites, Vermillion and Yamato 8451: Not quite a couple". Meteoritics & Planetary Science. 35 (4): 757–769. doi:10.1111/j.1945-5100.2000.tb01460.x.