View source for Glass with embedded metal and sulfides

{{Short description|Tiny spheroids in cosmic dust particles}}
'''Glass with embedded metal and sulfides''' ('''GEMS''') are tiny spheroids in [[cosmic dust]] particles with bulk compositions that are approximately [[chondritic]]. They form the building blocks of anhydrous [[cosmic dust|interplanetary dust particles]] (IDPs) in general, and ''cometary'' [[cosmic dust|IDP]]s, in particular. Their compositions, [[mineralogy]] and [[petrography]] appear to have been shaped by exposure to [[ionizing radiation]]. Since the exposure occurred prior to the [[Accretion (astrophysics)|accretion]] of cometary IDPs, and therefore [[comet]]s themselves, GEMS are likely either [[solar nebula]] or [[presolar grains|presolar interstellar grains]]. The properties of GEMS (size, shape, mineralogy) bear a strong resemblance to those of interstellar [[silicate]] grains as inferred from astronomical observations.<ref group=fn>Bradley and Ireland, 1996</ref>

==References==
* {{cite conference 
|author1=Bradley, John  |author2=Ireland, Trevor I 
| title=The Search for Interstellar Components in Interplanetary Dust Particles 
| book-title=Physics, Chemistry, and Dynamics of Interplanetary Dust, ASP Conference Series, Vol 104 
| date=1996
| pages=275–282 
}}

===Footnotes===
{{Reflist|group=fn}}

{{Glass production techniques}}

[[Category:Planetary science]]
[[Category:Solar System]]
[[Category:Meteoroids]]
[[Category:Glass compositions]]
[[Category:Glass in nature]]


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