Irradiation records in meteorites

Abstract

The approximately 4.6 billion-year history of a meteorite will encompass at least one episode of exposure to such energetic particles as cosmic rays; measurements of such exposure allow determination of how long a meteorite existed as a meter-sized body prior to earth impact. Meteorite exposure to energetic particles before their ejection from a parent body entails that the meteorite reside in the upper several m of that parent regolith. At the periods closest to the 4.6 billion year horizon, early solar system conditions may have been characterized by much gas and dust; irradiation records from this period may prove invaluable in reconstructing its characteristics.