On total Fe and Mg contents of chondrites

Abstract

Based on the few reliable analyses available at the time, Wiik (1956) demonstrated that bulk analyses of chondrites plotted along two lines of constant iron content. We have tested Wiik's conclusions based on a statistical analysis of bulk compositions of 550 Antarctic meteorites (Yanai et al., 1995). The distribution of total iron content for chondrites from this larger dataset confirms Wiik's perceptive interpretation and provides a boundary condition for chondritic parent body thermal evolution calculations.