¹D. Das et al. (>10)
Meteoritics & Planetary Science (in Press)
Open Access
Link to Article [DOI: 10.1111/maps.70237]
Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico, USA

Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons

Boron and lithium have been observed in Ca-sulfate veins of Gale crater. These elements are highly water mobile and can inform us regarding the aqueous processes that may have taken place in Gale crater. However, the analysis of B in Gale crater is limited to low-Fe rocks and minerals due to spectral interference of Fe with B in ChemCam data. We investigate the distribution of B and Li in various phases (veins, sheet silicate mineral-rich sedimentary rocks, salts, and igneous materials) within samples collected from Death Valley and surrounding locations in Southern California, which we use as a terrestrial analog for Gale crater. In the terrestrial analog samples set that we study, B concentration is found to be predominantly associated with borate minerals while elevated Li concentration is linked with the presence of sheet silicate minerals. Based on these observations, we suggest that B enrichment as evaporites such as borates may have formed during evaporation of borate-enriched fluids in drier atmospheric conditions while Li enrichment may have taken place due to surface adsorption to sheet silicate minerals. Prior literature indicated that different fluid pH conditions and atmospheric humidity levels are necessary for borate enrichment and Li adsorption. The process of adsorption to the surface of sheet silicates is attributed to high pH aqueous conditions while the formation of borate minerals is attributed to a combination of low aqueous pH and high evaporative atmospheric conditions. We infer that the coexistence of borate minerals and Li-containing sheet silicates is indicative of multiple generations of aqueous conditions that likely took place over multiple seasonal cycles. We extend our inference to Gale crater and draw from the similarities between dry-lake deposits of Death Valley to provide a terrestrial-analog backed hypothesis on B and Li enrichment on Mars. We conclude that multiple early and late-stage aqueous events that may have involved the participation of groundwater activity were likely present to account for the observations in Gale crater.

¹Christian J. Renggli, ²Andreas Morlok, ²Iris Weber, ²Maximilian P. Reitze, ³Tommaso Di Rocco, ⁴Jasper Berndt, ³Andreas Pack, ²Harald Hiesinger
Planetary Research, 1, 226
Open Access
Link to Article [DOI: 10.53480/bf74-m226]
¹Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research, Göttingen, Germany
²Institut für Planetologie, Universität Münster, Münster, Germany
³Geowissenschaftliches Zentrum, Abteilung Geochemie und Isotopengeologie, Universität Göttingen, Germany
⁴Institut für Mineralogie, Universität Münster, Münster, Germany

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^1,2,3,4Shengdong Chen et al. (>10)
Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets, 131, e2026JE009777
Link to Article [DOI: 10.1029/2026JE009777]
¹State Key Laboratory of Deep Earth Processes and Resources, Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, PR China
²Center for Advanced Planetary Science (CAPS), Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, PR China
³Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Mineral Physics and Materials, Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, PR China
⁴University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, PR China
Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons

The Moon’s highly reduced nature contrasts with recent findings of ferric iron (Fe³⁺)-bearing phases, suggesting an active redox cycle on the Moon. While solar wind proton reduction and impact-vaporization oxygen loss from minerals are proposed drivers for lunar reduction, direct nanometer-scale evidence for impact-driven deoxygenation has been lacking. Here we report the discovery of oxygen-deficient magnetite within impact melt glass in Chang’e-6 lunar farside samples from the South Pole-Aitken basin. This subhedral magnetite grain (Length 2.5 μm; width 1.5 μm.) exhibits a non-stoichiometric composition and crystal chemical formula [(Fe²⁺_1.158(7)Mg_0.070(5))_∑1.228(Fe³⁺_1.534(9)Cr³⁺_0.137(14)Al_0.101(8))_∑1.772]_∑3.000(O_3.886□_0.114)_∑4.000, confirming significant oxygen vacancies (□). Magnetite heating experiments (1000°C, in Ar atmosphere) replicated these features, demonstrating thermal deoxygenation generates oxygen vacancies through O₂ evolution and concurrent Fe³⁺ reduction. Our findings provide the first mineral structural evidence that post-shock heating drives deoxygenation in oxygen-bearing minerals, establishing impact-induced oxygen removal as a fundamental mechanism making the localized lunar surface chemically reduced.

^1,2S. N. Mantsevich, ¹Yu. S. Dobrolenskiy, ³O. V. Zakusina, ³T. A. Koroleva, ^3,4V. V. Krupskaya, ⁵N. A. Evdokimova
Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets, 131 e2026JE009946
Link to Article [DOI: 10.1029/2026JE009946]
¹Space Research Institute (IKI RAS), Moscow, Russia
²Physics Department, M.V. Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
³Institute of Ore Geology, Petrography, Mineralogy and Geochemistry (IGEM RAS), Moscow, Russia
⁴Faculty of Geology, M.V. Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
⁵Geophysical Institute, University of Alaska, Fairbanks, AK, USA
Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons

The acousto-optic tuneable filters can be used as main dispersive or auxiliary elements in compact spectrometers applied for various purposes such as atmospheric gas composition analysis, agriculture, or mineralogical analysis. This paper describes the features that arise when the problem of mineral identification is solved using an acousto-optic spectrometer. Estimates of such spectral device sensitivity are given in terms of the direct minimum detectable percentage ratio between the parent rock and the mineral being identified. It is shown that the minimum detectable value of the mineral percentage content depends significantly on its absorption band characteristics. The presented results can be generalized to reflectance spectra obtained by other types of optical spectrometers with similar characteristics and are of importance for the mineralogical analysis both in studies of the Earth’s surface and other objects in the Solar System.

¹Gowri Giri et al. (>10)
Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets (in Press)
Link to Article [DOI: 10.1029/2026JE009913]
¹Department of Geology, University of Kerala, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons Gypsum is a key mineral to reconstruct aqueous processes on Mars. Thus, this study compares gypsum from two contrasting terrestrial environments: the hyperarid Atacama Desert of Chile and the semi-arid Tiruchirappalli Badlands of India, and its comparison with multiple sites on Mars, serving as end-member analogs for Martian gypsum. Using field observations, petrography, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and hyperspectral reflectance, we characterized samples from both localities. In Atacama, gypsum occurs as fibrous veinlets within mudstone, with coexisting bassanite and anhydrite. Whereas in Tiruchirappalli, it forms fracture-filling veins with fluid inclusions and iron staining, and is associated with kaolinite-hematite within the Cretaceous mudstones of the Karai Formation. Raman and FTIR confirm the presence of gypsum at both sites, with an additional anhydrite phase in Atacama. These sites exhibit similar hyperspectral absorption features that match those observed by CRISM at Olympia Undae, Columbus Crater, and Mawrth Vallis. When Atacama gypsum formed as a primary evaporite through groundwater evaporation under extreme aridity, Tiruchirappalli gypsum formed diagenetically, precipitating from sulfate-rich fluids into fractures during burial and uplift, with tropical weathering. This spectral equivalence from different pathways shows that orbital spectra alone cannot determine gypsum genesis on Mars without geological context. The framework matches Atacama gypsum to Olympia Undae, Tiruchirappalli to Columbus Crater, and both to Mawrth Vallis. Fluid inclusions and endolithic communities highlight gypsum’s potential to preserve biosignatures. Together, these findings strengthen interpretations of the Martian paleoenvironment and guide gypsum-focused habitability assessments.

¹A. Sedaghat, ¹C. McLeod, ²M. Loocke, ³B. Shaulis
Icarus (in Press) Open Access Link to Article [DOI: 10.1016/j.icarus.2026.117331]
¹Department of Geology and Environmental Earth Science, Miami University, Oxford, OH 45056, USA
²Department of Geology and Geophysics, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA
³Trace Element and Radiogenic Isotope Laboratory (TRAIL), University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USA
Copyright Elsevier

Through integrated textural, mineralogical, and geochemical studies, symplectites provide fundamental constraints on the evolution and stability of geological systems. The returned 2018–2019 Antarctic Search for Meteorites Dominion (DOM) Range lunar meteorites contain ubiquitous three-phase symplectites consisting of fayalitic olivine (Fa), Ca-Fe-rich pyroxene (Px), and a silica phase (Si). Here, the textures and compositions of two textural symplectite types in DOM 18509 and DOM 18543 are investigated. Typical symplectites are characterized by a relatively uniform distribution of Fa-Px-Si and fine grain sizes (≤5 μm). Fayalite is Fe-rich (Fa_91–96) with associated pyroxene at Wo_31–40En_6–11Fs_51–61. Bulk compositions determined via reconstruction and broad beam analyses yielded lunar pyroxferroite compositions. The preservation of rare pyroxferroite in lunar materials is reported for DOM 18509: Wo_12-13En_9-10Fs_77–78. In contrast, non-typical symplectites exhibit variable grain sizes and consist of a Ca-rich host pyroxene (Wo_23–40En_8-18Fs_49–68) containing blebs of olivine (Fa_86–95) and silica. Reconstruction for the bulk precursor material yields a metastable pyroxene (Wo_24-26En_12-16Fs_58–64). While both symplectite types are interpreted as subsolidus breakdown products during slow cooling, their formation is associated with different breakdown pathways from distinct precursor phases. During late-stage crystallization in highly evolved lunar basaltic systems, pyroxene compositions enter the forbidden zone. At this stage, metastable Ca-rich pyroxene forms, followed by crystallization of metastable pyroxferroite during extreme Fe-enrichment. Subsequently, non-typical symplectites form through the subsolidus multistep breakdown of metastable Ca-rich pyroxene, whereas typical symplectites form through the direct subsolidus breakdown of pyroxferroite. These two symplectite textures record the evolution of metastable phases within reduced magmatic conditions in extraterrestrial environments.

¹Adriana Pisarčíková, ¹Jiří Borovička, ²Pavol Matlovič
Icarus (in Press)
Open Access Link to Article [DOI: 10.1016/j.icarus.2026.117327]
¹Astronomical Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Fričova 298, Ondřejov, 25165, Czech Republic
²Faculty of Mathematics, Physics and Informatics, Comenius University Bratislava, Mlynská dolina, 84248 Bratislava, Slovakia
Copyright Elsevier

Laboratory simulations of meteor ablation provide a critical quantitative link between the chemical composition of meteoroids and their observed spectral features. In this work, we analyzed high-resolution Echelle spectra (wavelength range 380–780 nm) of 22 diverse meteorites from the dataset presented in our previous work (Matlovič et al., 2024), representing the largest collection of laboratory meteor analogs to date. Using a radiative transfer model assuming local thermodynamic equilibrium (LTE) and accounting for self-absorption in optically thick plasma, we derived plasma parameters and elemental abundances for both major (Fe, Mg, Cr, Mn, Si, Na, Ni, Li, and K) and minor (Co, Cu, and V) species. Comparison with known bulk meteorite compositions allowed us to validate the modeling approach and assess chemical biases resulting from laboratory-induced ablation. Our analysis suggested plasma temperatures between 5220 and 5810 K and revealed systematic discrepancies in the elemental abundances compared to the original chemical composition. Specifically, we observed a significant enhancement of volatile species (Na, K) relative to Fe, accompanied by a depletion of the moderately volatile element Mg, while refractory elements (Al, Ca, Ti) remained undetected in the plasma radiation. These trends are consistent with the equilibrium vaporization model and demonstrate that under the simulated entry conditions ($\sim$12 km s⁻¹ at $\sim$80 km altitude), the ablation process is dominated by incomplete and fractional vaporization. We conclude that while laboratory spectra of plasma from ablated meteorites do not fully reflect the original bulk composition, radiative transfer modeling effectively characterizes the state of the radiating plasma, offering a more robust approach for interpreting compositional properties from meteor observations.

¹Justin I. Simon, ²Rosalind M. G. Armytage
Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 695, 120293
Open Access Link to Article [DOI: 10.1016/j.epsl.2026.120293]
¹Astromaterial Research & Exploration Science, NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX, 77058, USA
²Amentum, NASA Johnson Space Center, 2101 NASA Parkway, Houston, TX, 77058, USA
Copyright Elsevier

Thermal ionization mass spectrometry measurements of non-mass-dependent calcium isotope effects in calcium-aluminum-rich refractory inclusions show resolvable anomalies, both ⁴⁸Ca isotope excesses and deficits, when compared to measured reference materials used to define the normal terrestrial planet composition (ε⁴⁸Ca = 0$\pm$3.52SD ε-unit, part in 10,000, for the ⁴⁸Ca/⁴⁴Ca ratio). For two of the studied inclusions resolvable intra ε⁴⁸Ca heterogeneity also exists. The measured range and heterogeneity of calcium isotope effects represent a vestige of presolar stellar nucleosynthetically distinct carriers contributed to the Solar protoplanetary disk at the time refractory inclusions were forming, representing the earliest record of infall events since molecular cloud collapse. When directly compared to mass-dependent calcium isotope fractionation effects, as well as mass-dependent and non-mass-dependent titanium isotope effects, and moderately refractory element isotopic signatures, a more complete view of how inclusions, and through their compositions, the early Solar System formed. Additionally, the long-debated nature of several common inclusion types, e.g., melilite-mantled coarse-grained Type B’s, can be more clearly understood when evidence from both refractory elements, for a primordial record, and the moderately refractory elements, for late nebular formation events are considered. Collectively, cosmochemical and chronological records contained in refractory inclusions are important because they formed during the early period of Solar System evolution in which the protoplanetary disk began to dissect into distinct radial reservoirs, likely caused by the formation of giant gaseous planets, directly recording reservoirs, processes, and timescales from which building blocks of terrestrial planets emerged.

¹M. A. Ivanova, ^2,3S. N. Britvin, ⁴A. N. Krot, ⁴K. Nagashima, ⁵N. G. Zinovieva
Meteoritics & Planetary Science (in Press) Link to Article [DOI: 10.1111/maps.70234]
¹Vernadsky Institute of Geochemistry of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
²Saint-Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg, Russia
³Kola Science Center, Russian Academy of Sciences, Apatity, Russia
⁴Hawai‘i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology, School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology, University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA
⁵M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons

We describe here zeolites and zeolite-like phases in Ca,Al-inclusions (CAIs) from Kaidun microbreccia and Northwest Africa (NWA) 3118 (CV3) chondrite studied using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), electron probe microanalysis (EPMA), secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction (SCXRD). Large (~4–8 μm in size) fragments of a coarse-grained igneous type B CAI from Kaidun consist of melilite (Åk_35–75), anorthite, magnesian spinel (<1 wt% FeO), and Al,Ti-diopside (in wt%, TiO₂ 4–18, Al₂O₃ 16–22); perovskite, hibonite, and Fe,Ni-metal are minor. The CAI experienced aqueous alteration that resulted in replacement of melilite by the calcite + apophyllite [KCa₄ (Si₈O₂₀) (OH,F)·8H₂O] + zeolites [natrolite (Na₂Al₂Si₃O₁₀·2H₂O)] and phillipsite-Na [(Na,K,Ca_0.5)_4–7 (Al_4–7Si₁₂₋₉O₃₂)·12H₂O] assemblage previously unreported in meteorites. Oxygen isotopic composition of calcite is similar to that in CR chondrites (Δ¹⁷O ~2‰, δ¹⁸O ~41‰). Phillipsite and natrolite have Δ¹⁷O close to that of calcite; the lack of proper SIMS standards for these minerals does not allow us to constrain their δ¹⁸O values. These data and textural observations suggest co-precipitation of calcite and zeolites. Calcite–zeolite assemblages are commonly observed in terrestrial rocks that experienced aqueous alteration in the presence of low-temperature alkaline- and carbonate-rich solutions. We suggest that aqueous alteration and formation of calcite–zeolite–apophyllite assemblage in Kaidun CAI occurred in fractures, cracks, and veins from volatile-rich, alkaline hydrothermal fluids (pH = 8–10) at ~20–150°C. This alteration has little effect on oxygen and aluminum–magnesium isotope systematics of primary minerals in the Kaidun CAI: melilite, spinel, pyroxene, and anorthite have solar-like oxygen isotope compositions: Δ¹⁷O = −22 to −25‰ and show resolvable excess of radiogenic ²⁶Mg corresponding to the inferred initial ²⁶Al/²⁷Al ratio [(²⁶Al/²⁷Al)₀] of (4.97 ± 0.11) × 10⁻⁵ (MSWD = 0.57; δ²⁶Mg*₀ = 0.04 ± 0.05‰). Type C CAI from NWA 3118 consists of melilite (Åk_18–56, 0.1–0.3 wt% Na₂O), anorthite, Al,Ti-diopside (in wt%, TiO₂ 3–5, Al₂O₃ 16–24), and spinel (up to 3.3 wt% FeO). Melilite and anorthite in the peripheral part of the CAI are replaced by nepheline, sodalite, Na-bearing plagioclase, and hedenbergite. Melilite in the CAI core is replaced by a hydrated silica-rich amorphous phase, which may have been originally a zeolite that subsequently experienced structural and compositional changes during thermal metamorphism in the CV parent asteroid.

¹Jiawei Wang, ^1,2Nicole M. Fernandez
Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets, 131, e2025JE009493 Open Access Link to Article [DOI: 10.1029/2025JE009493]
¹Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
²Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, ETH Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
Published by rrangement with John Wiley & Sons

Oxidized clays and the widespread Al/Si-over-Fe/Mg stratigraphy on Mars imply prolonged water-rock interactions and efficient oxidative weathering despite the largely anoxic conditions of Early Mars when most deposits formed during the climate optimum. Oxychlorine species are now known to be common on Mars, and laboratory kinetics show that chlorate oxidizes Fe(II) orders of magnitude faster than O2$$ at low temperatures, motivating a chlorate-centered oxidative weathering framework. We develop a 1-D reactive transport model that explicitly includes Fe(II) oxidation by chlorate to evaluate whether low-temperature alteration of basalt can produce oxidized Fe(III)-rich smectites (nontronite) and associated weathering-derived minerals commonly observed on Mars. Model simulations span oxidant supply (chlorate 1⁢0−10$$–1⁢0−3 M$$; oxygen partial pressure (p⁢O2$$, 1⁢0−5$$–0.21 bar), climate (0–25 °C$$; 30–800 m⁢m y⁢r−1$$), and parent basalt mineralogy. Across this space, only saponite, nontronite, kaolinite, and amorphous silica consistently formed. Dissolved chlorate on the order of 1⁢0−5$$–1⁢0−4 M$$ reproduces the canonical Al/Si cap over Fe/Mg-smectites within ∼200 kyr and builds clay-bearing intervals approaching 100 m. Clay-bearing unit accumulation is nonlinear, with most deposition occurring in the early stages of oxidative weathering, highlighting limitations of constant net-rate assumptions for long-term thickness. An intermediate climate window ( ∼10$$–15 °C$$; 50–100 m⁢m y⁢r−1$$) preserves thick sections with an Al-rich cap. Certain clay phases are sensitive to parent basalt mineralogy (plagioclase favors kaolinite; olivine/pyroxene favor saponite), whereas nontronite reflects oxidant capacity and amorphous silica marks cool–dry conditions. These findings provide a testable chlorate-driven framework that reconciles oxidized clays under anoxic conditions and links stratigraphy to redox, climate, and bedrock composition.