Ablation
The removal of material from a meteoroid through melting, vaporization, and erosion while it travels through the atmosphere.
Meteorite Glossary
Meteorites carry a precise scientific vocabulary. This glossary explains the essential terms used by researchers, institutions, dealers, and collectors—from atmospheric flight and mineralogy to classification and curation.
Use the index to move through the archive. Definitions are concise introductions; formal classification follows the Meteoritical Society and its approved nomenclature.
A
Achondrite
A stony meteorite without chondrules, formed on a differentiated parent body and often resembling terrestrial igneous rock.
Asteroid
A natural rocky or metallic body orbiting the Sun, smaller than a planet. Most meteorites originate from asteroids.
B
Breccia
A rock composed of angular fragments cemented together, commonly produced by impacts on a meteorite’s parent body.
Bolide
An exceptionally bright meteor, often one that fragments or explodes in the atmosphere.
C
Carbonaceous Chondrite
A primitive chondrite rich in carbon compounds and, in some groups, water-bearing minerals.
Chondrite
A primitive stony meteorite that has not been melted and differentiated on its parent body.
Chondrule
A small, once-molten silicate sphere preserved in many chondrites; among the oldest solid materials in the Solar System.
Classification
The scientific assignment of a meteorite to a group based on mineralogy, chemistry, texture, and isotopic characteristics.
Crust (Fusion Crust)
The thin, usually dark surface formed when the exterior melts during atmospheric flight and rapidly cools.
D
Differentiation
The separation of a heated parent body into layers such as metallic core, silicate mantle, and crust.
E
Enstatite Chondrite
A rare chondrite formed under highly reducing conditions and dominated by the magnesium silicate enstatite.
Eucrite
A basaltic achondrite in the HED clan, widely interpreted as material from the crust of asteroid 4 Vesta.
F
Fall
A meteorite recovered after its descent was observed or reliably documented.
Find
A meteorite discovered without a witnessed fall or direct observation of its arrival.
Fireball
A meteor brighter than Venus, produced when a relatively large meteoroid enters the atmosphere.
Fragmentation
The breaking apart of a meteoroid under atmospheric stress or through collisions in space.
H
HED Meteorites
The howardite–eucrite–diogenite clan of achondrites, linked by composition and generally associated with asteroid 4 Vesta.
Hexahedrite
An iron meteorite composed mainly of kamacite and typically lacking the Widmanstätten pattern.
Howardite
A polymict breccia containing mixed eucritic and diogenitic material, part of the HED clan.
I
Impact Melt
Rock melted by the intense heat and pressure of an impact, later solidifying as veins, pockets, or breccia matrix.
Iron Meteorite
A meteorite composed mainly of iron-nickel metal, generally representing differentiated core or metal-rich material.
L
Lunar Meteorite
A meteorite ejected from the Moon by an impact and later delivered naturally to Earth.
M
Mars Rock / Martian Meteorite
A meteorite ejected from Mars, identified through mineralogy, isotopes, and trapped gases matching the Martian atmosphere.
Meteor
The visible streak of light produced when a meteoroid heats and excites the atmosphere.
Meteorite
Natural extraterrestrial material that survives passage through the atmosphere and reaches Earth’s surface.
Meteoroid
A natural solid object moving through space that is smaller than an asteroid and may produce a meteor upon atmospheric entry.
MetBull
Common shorthand for the Meteoritical Bulletin Database, the authoritative record of approved meteorite names and classifications.
O
Ordinary Chondrite
The most abundant broad class of meteorites, divided principally into H, L, and LL chemical groups.
Orientation
A flight-stabilized shape developed during atmospheric passage, sometimes marked by a shield-like form and flow lines.
P
Pallasite
A stony-iron meteorite containing olivine crystals set within an iron-nickel metal matrix.
Parent Body
The asteroid, planet, moon, or comet from which a meteorite originated.
Petrologic Type
A numerical indication of a chondrite’s degree of aqueous alteration or thermal metamorphism, commonly expressed from type 1 to 7.
Provenance
The documented history of a specimen’s discovery, ownership, classification, and movement through collections.
R
Regmaglypt
A thumbprint-like depression sculpted by aerodynamic ablation on the surface of some meteorites.
S
Shock Stage
A scale describing microscopic and structural changes caused by impact pressure, commonly recorded from S1 to S6 in ordinary chondrites.
Stony-Iron Meteorite
A meteorite containing substantial proportions of both silicate minerals and iron-nickel metal.
Strewn Field
The geographic area across which fragments from a single meteorite fall are distributed.
T
Tektite
Natural terrestrial glass formed when a large impact melts and ejects Earth material. Tektites are impactites, not meteorites.
Terrestrial Age
The length of time a meteorite has resided on Earth since its fall.
Troilite
Iron sulfide (FeS), a common accessory mineral in many meteorites.
W
Weathering Grade
A measure of terrestrial alteration after a meteorite lands, often recorded as W0 to W6 for ordinary chondrites.
Widmanstätten Pattern
An interlocking crystalline pattern revealed in some polished and etched iron meteorites by the slow cooling of kamacite and taenite.
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