Primitive Meteorites and Asteroids: Physical, Chemical, and Spectroscopic Observations Paving the Way to Exploration

Primitive Meteorites and Asteroids: Physical, Chemical, and Spectroscopic Observations Paving the Way to Exploration covers the physical, chemical and spectroscopic aspects of asteroids, providing important data and research on carbonaceous chondrites and primitive meteorites. This information is crucial to the success of missions to parent bodies, thus contributing to an understanding of the early solar system. The book offers an interdisciplinary perspective relevant to many fields of planetary science, as well as cosmochemistry, planetary astronomy, astrobiology, geology and space engineering.

Including contributions from planetary and missions scientists worldwide, the book collects the fundamental knowledge and cutting-edge research on carbonaceous chondrites and their parent bodies into one accessible resource, thus contributing to the future of space exploration.

Presents the most current data and information on the mission-relevant characteristics of primitive asteroidsAddresses the physical, chemical and spectral characteristics of carbonaceous chondritic meteorites and the bearings on successful exploration of their parent asteroidsIncludes chapters on geotechnical properties and resource extraction

1. History of Asteroid Missions 2. Petrology of Hydrated Carbonaceous Chondrites 3. Thermal Histories in Carbonaceous Chondrites 4. The Origin and Evolution of Organic Matter in Carbonaceous Chondrites and Links to Asteroid Parent Bodies 5. Reflectance Spectroscopy of Carbonaceous Chondrites 6. Compositional Diversity among Primitive Asteroids 7. The Density, Porosity, and Strength Properties of Near-Earth Primitive Asteroids 8. Geotechnical Properties of Asteroids Affecting Surface Operations, Mining, and ISRU Activities 9. Scale-dependent Strength Properties of Regoliths 10. Linking Water-Rich Asteroids to Carbonaceous Chondrites: Implications for Asteroid Space Missions 11. Exploring the Possible Continuum Between Comets and Asteroids 12. Practical Applications of the ARRM Mission Related to ISRU in Support of Human Exploration 13. Other Missions to Asteroids