Iron meteorite

Iron meteorites, also called siderites or ferrous meteorites, are a type of meteorite consisting overwhelmingly of an iron–nickel alloy known as meteoric iron, which usually comprises two mineral phases: kamacite and taenite. Most iron meteorites originate from cores of planetesimals, with the exception of the IIE iron meteorite group.

The iron found in iron meteorites was one of the earliest sources of usable iron available to humans, due to the malleability and ductility of the meteoric iron, before the development of smelting that signaled the beginning of the Iron Age.