Schreibersite is generally a rare
iron nickel phosphide
mineral, , though common in iron-nickel
meteorites. It has been found on
Disko Island
Disko Island ( kl, Qeqertarsuaq, da, Diskoøen) is a large island in Baffin Bay, off the west coast of Greenland. It has an area of , in
Greenland and
Illinois.
Another name used for the mineral is rhabdite. It forms
tetragonal crystals with perfect 001 cleavage. Its color ranges from bronze to brass yellow to silver white. It has a density of 7.5 and a hardness of 6.5 – 7. It is opaque with a metallic luster and a dark gray streak. It was named after the Austrian scientist
Carl Franz Anton Ritter von Schreibers (1775–1852), who was one of the first to describe it from
iron meteorites.
[Schreibersite]
Webmineral
Schreibersite is reported from the Magura Meteorite, Arva-(present name – Orava),
Slovak Republic; the
Sikhote-Alin Meteorite
An iron meteorite fell on the Sikhote-Alin Mountains, in southeastern Russia, in 1947. Large iron meteorite falls have been witnessed and fragments recovered but never before, in recorded history, a fall of this magnitude. An estimated 23 tonnes ...
in eastern
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eight ...
; the
São Julião de Moreira Meteorite, Viana do Castelo,
Portugal; the Gebel Kamil (meteorite) in
Egypt; and numerous other locations including the
Moon.
In 2007, researchers reported that schreibersite and other meteoric
phosphorus bearing minerals may be the ultimate source for the phosphorus that is so important for life on Earth. In 2013, researchers reported that they had successfully produced
pyrophosphite
A phosphite anion or phosphite in inorganic chemistry usually refers to PO3sup>2− but includes 2PO3sup>− ( PO2(OH)sup>−). These anions are the conjugate bases of phosphorous acid (H3PO3). The corresponding salts, e.g. sodium phosphite ...
, a possible precursor to
pyrophosphate, the molecule associated with
ATP, a co-enzyme central to energy metabolism in all life on Earth. Their experiment consisted of subjecting a sample of schreibersite to a warm, acidic environment typically found in association with volcanic activity, activity that was far more common on the primordial Earth. They hypothesized that their experiment might represent what they termed "chemical life", a stage of evolution which may have led to the emergence of fully biological life as exists today.
In 1986 researchers found
lightning can create schreibersite
and may have been the source of phosphorus for early life.
See also
*
Glossary of meteoritics
This is a glossary of terms used in meteoritics, the science of meteorites.
#
* 2 Pallas – an asteroid from the asteroid belt and one of the likely parent bodies of the CR meteorites.
* 4 Vesta – second-largest asteroid in the asteroid b ...
*
List of minerals
*
List of minerals named after people
References
{{Meteorites
Iron minerals
Nickel minerals
Phosphide minerals
Meteorite minerals
Tetragonal minerals
Minerals in space group 82
Disko Island
Native element minerals