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  • A new type of solar-system ...
    Schmitz, B; Yin, Q-Z; Sanborn, M E; Tassinari, M; Caplan, C E; Huss, G R

    Nature communications, 06/2016, Volume: 7, Issue: 1
    Journal Article

    From mid-Ordovician ∼470 Myr-old limestone >100 fossil L-chondritic meteorites have been recovered, representing the markedly enhanced flux of meteorites to Earth following the breakup of the L-chondrite parent body. Recently one anomalous meteorite, Österplana 065 (Öst 65), was found in the same beds that yield L chondrites. The cosmic-ray exposure age of Öst 65 shows that it may be a fragment of the impactor that broke up the L-chondrite parent body. Here we show that in a chromium versus oxygen-isotope plot Öst 65 falls outside all fields encompassing the known meteorite types. This may be the first documented example of an 'extinct' meteorite, that is, a meteorite type that does not fall on Earth today because its parent body has been consumed by collisions. The meteorites found on Earth today apparently do not give a full representation of the kind of bodies in the asteroid belt ∼500 Myr ago.