Heating is due to ram pressure for bodies larger than a few millimeters. For
very small particles, ram pressure is not a factor because of the large
distance between air molecules compared with the cross-sectional area. These
small particles do heat up as the result of collisions with molecules, in a
process that is analogous to friction.
In other words, for all bodies that produce meteorites, frictional heating
effects are insignificant.
Chris
*****************************************
Chris L Peterson
Cloudbait Observatory
http://www.cloudbait.com
----- Original Message -----
From: "JoshuaTreeMuseum" <joshuatreemus...@embarqmail.com>
To: <meteorite-list@meteoritecentral.com>
Sent: Tuesday, November 23, 2010 2:22 PM
Subject: [meteorite-list] Temperature of meteorites
I was under the impression that it's a myth that direct friction from O and
N molecules on the surface of a meteorite create the heat that causes
ablation. I thought that ram pressure in front of the meteorite was the
main factor in generating heat. The KE and PE would create a hot shock
layer which would flow back around the meteorite causing its outer layer to
melt. I would think that friction is a minor factor, unless you're
talking about ram pressure as a kind of friction.
Phil Whitmer
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