First some definitions from Wikipedia: A METEORITE is an extraterrestrial body that survives its impact with the Earth's (or other planet's) surface without being destroyed. While in space it is called a METEOROID. When it enters the atmosphere, air resistance causes the body to heat up and emit light, thus forming a fireball, also known as a METEOR or shooting star.
This book is about meteorites, their makeup, and what we have learned from them. Some 88 authors from nine countries have contributed to the writing. This book describes the state of the art as known to science as of March 2006 when the book was finally put to bed. It is suitable as a graduate level text and a reference for meteoriticists and other researchers in allied fields.
The study of meteorites is a fairly new science. It is only in the last century or so that people realized that rocks could fall from the heavens. In that time scientists have come to realize that these rocks, coming from outside the Earth provide a unique insite to exterrestrial situations including the birth of the solar system.