Reflectance spectra of meteorites and asteroids

Before the advent of the Apollo and Luna missions which retrieved samples from the Moon s surface, meteorites provided the only source of extraterrestrial materials and raised questions about their sources from parent bodies such as asteroids. Visible to near-infrared reflectance spectroscopy, therefore, has been applied extensively to laboratory investigations of meteorites and to remote-sensed measurements of many asteroids (Gaffey, 1976 Gaffey and McCord, 1978 McFadden et al., 1982,1984 Bell and Keil, 1988). 

Spectral reflectance curves for the range of meteorite types are illustrated in fig. 10.12. These spectra demonstrate the diagnostic features of the various 

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