Thermoluminescence of meteorites and their orbits

Abstract

The thermoluminescence (TL) levels of 45 ordinary chondrites were measured to obtain information about the meteorite orbits. The low-temperature TL reaches equilibrium while the meteorite is in space and reflects the temperature of the meteorite at perihelion. Samples of Pribram, Lost City, and Innisfree, whose orbits are accurately known, were used as control samples. The TL levels in 40 out ot 42 meteorites are similar to the three control samples, indicating that the vast majority of ordinary chondrites that survive atmospheric entry have perihelia similar to three known orbits, i.e., in the range 0.8–1 AU. The effects of albedo and rotation are also considered. A simple model indicates that temperature gradients of 1–2°K/cm are possible in slowly rotating meteoroids and such a temperature gradient is consistent with the unusually large TL gradient measured in the Farmville meteorite. Since slow rotation rates are improbable, other possibilities are examined but no satisfactory explanation has been found. The TL level measured in the Malakal meteorite is two orders of magnitude lower than control samples and is best explained by thermal draining due to solar heating in an orbit with a small perihelion distance. The perihelion is estimated to be∼0.5–0.6AU.

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