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Ceplecha & McCrosky 1976
Ceplecha, Z. and McCrosky, R.E. (1976). Fireball end heights: A diagnostic for the structure of meteoric material. Journal of Geophysical Research 81: doi: 10.1029/JB081i035p06257. issn: 0148-0227.

An earlier analysis of Prairie Network fireball trajectory data by the authors failed to discriminate between the varieties of meteoric materials that are thought to be present. The Lost City event offers a new calibration of the fireball data and prompts a new analysis intended to distinguish between ordinary chondritic meteorites and the more fragile early type carbonaceous chondrites. The carbonaceous material is expected to ablate more readily and thus to have shorter trajectories or higher end heights. Observational error and the natural dispersion in the structure produce severe smoothing effects, and the end height diagnostic is, in itself, not entirely convincing. However, after making a tentative division of the data, one can discern differences in orbits and beginning heights among the three end height groups. These are consistent with our expectation of the behavior of chondritic stone (group I), weak carbonaceous chondrites (group II), and still more fragile cometary material (group III). We conclude that if the carbonaceous material occurs in reasonable abundance among the fireballs, it has been properly identified by this analysis.

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Journal of Geophysical Research
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