A small round grain or pellet of silicate material found in meteorites, formed by rapid cooling of cosmic dust.
From Greek chondros (grain or seed) + -ule (diminutive). The term was applied to meteorite components in the 19th century because of their granular appearance resembling grain.
Chondrules in meteorites are like tiny time capsules from the early solar system—they formed in the cosmic nebula over 4.5 billion years ago and hardened as they cooled in space before landing on Earth.
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