[meteorite-list] meteorites from Phobos?

From: Ron Baalke <baalke_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 10:29:57 2004
Message-ID: <200309180010.RAA26621_at_zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>

> My question is: Would it be possible to find on Earth, meteorites with =
> an origin from Phobos (or the other moon Deimos)?
> Or would the fragments be mainly gravitationally atracted by Mars?
> I suppose that other factors should be considered, such as the angle and =
> the velocity of the impactors on the moons?
>

It is possible, but the real trick would be to correlate it specifically to
Phobos. Spectroscopic analysis of Phobos indicates that its composition is similar
to carbonaceous chondrites. But spectra matches have also been found between
carbonaceous chondrites and several other asteroids. And Phobos is strongly
suspected of being a captured asteroid. So, unless you can find something
about Phobos that makes it uniquely different from the other asteroids, it will
be nearly impossible to determine if a meteorite came from Phobos or a
similar asteroid.

By the way, that image of the boulder on Phobos is a cool image, particurly
with the long shadows.

Ron Baalke
Received on Wed 17 Sep 2003 08:10:23 PM PDT