noun
- A magnesium silicate mineral, MgSiO₃, that is an important constituent of igneous rocks and meteorites.
Usage: technical; mineralogy
Examples
- Enstatite is commonly found in basaltic rocks and is one of the pyroxene minerals.
- Meteorite samples often contain enstatite, which helps scientists understand the composition of the early solar system.
- The mineral enstatite crystallizes in the orthorhombic system.
- Geologists use enstatite content to classify certain types of meteorites.
- Enstatite has a hardness of about 5 on the Mohs scale.