Size-frequency distributions of dust-size debris from the impact disruption of chondritic meteorites

We present mass-frequency data for fragments from the impact disruption of four chondritic meteorites, extending to masses several orders of magnitude smaller the mass-frequency data that are usually measured in similar impact experiments. Masses of mm- to cm-scale fragments were determined by directly weighing debris collected from the floor of the Ames Vertical Gun Range impact chamber. Masses of sub-mm to dust-size fragments were determined from analysis of foil penetration data. The mass-frequency distributions display a range of morphologies ranging from nearly linear power-law distributions to 'broken' power laws with progressively shallower slopes at smaller fragment masses, apparently dependent on the magnitude of the impact specific energy.