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Impact Melt Rock

Encyclopedia of Astrobiology

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Definition

An impact melt rock is a type of rock typically found in impact structures. It is an impactite consisting of a mixture of solid and melt fragments all derived from the target rock, floating in a glassy, microcrystalline, or recrystallized matrix. The solid fragments may contain shocked minerals. An impact melt rock results from the cooling of the melt pool that formed within a crater because of the high temperature and pressure generated during the impact. The largest craters such as Sudbury (Ontario, Canada), Chicxulub (Mexico), Popigai (Siberia), or Manicouagan (Québec, Canada) contain a very large volume of impact melt. In the case of Sudbury, it also hosts important ore deposits of nickel.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Earth System Science, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium

    Philippe Claeys

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  1. Philippe Claeys
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Correspondence to Philippe Claeys .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Centro de Biología Molecular, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain

    Ricardo Amils

  2. Labo. d'Astrophysique de Bordeaux (LAB), Observatoire Aquitain des Sciences de l'Univers (OASU), Floirac CX, France

    Muriel Gargaud

  3. Centro de Astrobiología (CAB), Inst. Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial, Torrejón de Ardoz, Madrid, Spain

    José Cernicharo Quintanilla

  4. Geophysical Lab., Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington, District of Columbia, USA

    Henderson James Cleaves

  5. Astronomy Department, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts, USA

    William M. Irvine

  6. Dépt. Sc. de la Terre et de l’Atmosphère, Université du Québec, Montréal, Montreal, Québec, Canada

    Daniele Pinti

  7. Centre National d'Etudes Spatiale (CNES) DPI/E2U, Paris CX, France

    Michel Viso

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© 2014 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Claeys, P. (2014). Impact Melt Rock. In: Amils, R., et al. Encyclopedia of Astrobiology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27833-4_779-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27833-4_779-3

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-27833-4

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Physics and AstronomyReference Module Physical and Materials ScienceReference Module Chemistry, Materials and Physics

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Chapter history

  1. Latest

    Impact Melt Rock
    Published:
    01 May 2022

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27833-4_779-4

  2. Original

    Impact Melt Rock
    Published:
    30 April 2015

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27833-4_779-3

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