What elemental signature is associated with Iron vaporizing from meteoroid material?
Answer
Yellow/Orange flashes
The chemical makeup of the space debris dictates the colors it emits when vaporized due to atmospheric entry heating. Iron is specifically noted as an element that contributes to the warm end of the spectrum when it ablates. When iron atoms or molecules are excited by the meteor's heat, they emit light predominantly characterized as yellow-orange flashes. This is distinct from sodium, which also produces yellow/orange tints, and separate from magnesium's blue-green signature or atmospheric nitrogen's red signature. Thus, observing yellow-orange flashes originating from the material itself suggests the presence of iron or sodium within the composition of the impacting particle.
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