Isotopes and distribution of iron in nature

Distribution in nature
As abundance, iron is the tenth element in the universe and Earth 4th (second metal after aluminum). But as mass, iron tops the Earth. At present it is considered that 80% of Earth’s inner core is made of iron. As various combinations, he formed 5% of the earth’s crust but found only pure accident (in meteorites). It also means that Mars owes its red color of a soil rich in iron oxide.
Isotopes
Iron has four isotopes natural. In order of relative abundance, they are: 56Fe (91.7%), 54Fe (5.8%), 57Fe (2.2%) and 58Fe (0.3%). Also, another 10 known synthetic iron isotopes. It has been shown (by the correlation between the abundance of the isotope 60Ni, a product of decay of 60Fe and stable isotopes of iron abundance in some meteorites) that 60Fe existed naturally during the formation of the solar system.
In 2000, worldwide were produced about 1 billion tons of iron ore, worth approx. 25 billion euros. From this amount of ore were obtained about 572 million tons of pig iron.
Iron ore are currently operating in 48 countries, the top five producers: China, Brazil, Australia, Russia and India providing 70% of total world production.