Meteorites and Planet Formation

TL;DR

Meteorites are crucial for understanding the early formation and evolution of the Solar System and planetary systems, providing detailed insights despite representing only our own system.

Contribution

This paper reviews how meteorites inform our knowledge of planetary formation and evolution, with implications for extrasolar planetary systems.

Findings

Meteorites reveal early Solar System processes

They help interpret planetary geological evolution

Insights extend to extrasolar planetary systems

Abstract

Meteorites are a remarkable resource. They capture the imagination of people worldwide with their spectacular entry through Earth's atmosphere as fireballs, and their exotic character of being pieces of other worlds. Scientifically, they are critical to interpreting the early stages of formation of the Solar System, as well as the geological evolution of asteroids, the Moon, and Mars, and they are vital to understanding planetary formation processes. With the burgeoning exploration of extrasolar planetary systems, knowledge of the fundamental process of planetary growth from protoplanetary disks has taken on a new significance. Meteorites provide essential and detailed insight into the formation of planetary systems, although we must bear in mind that they only represent one reference point (our own Solar System) in what is clearly a wide spectrum of possible chemical and physical parameters governing the diverse realm of extrasolar planets. This chapter summarises the nature of our meteorite collections, and the ways in which meteorites contribute to our understanding of the formation and evolution of our own Solar System, with broader implications for planetary systems in general.