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How do stony meteorites differ from iron meteorites?
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Meteorite
The Hoba meteorite, lying where it was discovered in 1920 near Grootfontein, Namibia. The largest meteorite on Earth and an iron meteorite by classification, it consists of a nickel-iron alloy and is estimated to weigh about 60 tons.
Meteorites are categorized into three main types based on the proportions of rock-forming silicate minerals and nickel-iron metal they contain. The primary differences between stony and iron meteorites are as follows:1
- Composition: Stony meteorites consist largely of silicate minerals. In contrast, iron meteorites are composed primarily of dense nickel-iron metal, specifically the minerals kamacite and taenite.23
- Origin and Formation: Stony meteorites are divided into chondrites, which are primitive aggregates that have not experienced significant melting, and achondrites, which formed through the melting of parent bodies. Iron meteorites are thought to have originated from the metallic cores of differentiated asteroids, where dense metal segregated from less-dense silicates during melting.231
- Abundance: Stony meteorites are the most common, accounting for approximately 94 percent of all known meteorites, while iron meteorites make up about 5 percent.1
An intermediate category, stony iron meteorites, contains substantial amounts of both silicate material and nickel-iron metal.4