¹Anatolii V. Fisenko,²Sasha B. Verchovsky,^3,4Andrei A. Shiryaev,¹Luba F. Semjonova
Meteoritics & Planetary Science (in Press) Link to Article [DOI: 10.1111/maps.12743]
¹Vernadsky Institute of Geochemistry and Analytical Chemistry RAS, Moscow, Russia
²Department of Physical Sciences, The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK
³Institute of Physical Chemistry and Electrochemistry RAS, Moscow, Russia
⁴Institute of Geology of Ore Deposit, Petrography, Geochemistry and Mineralogy RAS s, Moscow, Russia
Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons

A nanodiamond-rich fraction (NDF) separated from the Orgueil meteorite was subjected to a high-intensity ultrasonic treatment in a weakly acidic aqueous solution. After sedimentation by centrifugation, two fractions of grains (suspension, designated as OD7C and sediment, designated as OD7D) with different properties have been obtained. The following effects of the sonication were revealed from comparison of the contents and isotope compositions of C, N, and Xe released during stepped pyrolysis and combustion of the fractions OD7C and OD7D, the initial NDF and two grain-size fractions (OD10 and OD15) produced without sonication (a) surface layer of the sonicated diamond grains is modified to different extent in comparison with nontreated ones, (b) in some grains concentrations of the bulk N and Xe a reduced significantly, and (c) nondiamond nitrogen containing phases (e.g., Si3N4) have been destroyed. It is suggested that combined effects of the sonication and centrifugation observed for the fractions OD7C and OD7D are due to differences in surface chemistry of the nanodiamond grains, which statistically influences behavior of nanoparticles during the sonication resulting in their preferential modification in the different reaction zones of the cavitating fluid.

¹Nicholas Castle, ¹Christopher D. K. Herd
Meteoritics & Planetary Science (in Press) Link to Article [DOI: 10.1111/maps.12739]
¹Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons

Tissint is an olivine-phyric shergottite from an incompatible element depleted Martian mantle source. Oxythermobarometry applied to Tissint mineral phases demonstrates that the Tissint magma underwent an increase in oxygen fugacity, from ~3.5 log units below the quarz-fayalite-magnetite (QFM) buffer during the early stages of crystallization, to QFM−1.4 during the latter stages. This is the first time that such an oxidation event has been observed in a depleted shergottite. The reason for the oxidation event is unclear; however, calculations using the MELTS thermodynamic model suggest that auto-oxidation is insufficient to cause more than ~1 log unit of oxidation, and therefore an external oxidation mechanism—such as oxidation by degassing—is required. If volatiles are responsible for the oxidation, then it indicates that volatiles are not exclusively tied to the enriched Martian mantle reservoir. A series of experiments using the Tissint parental magma were carried out under fixed (isothermal) or variable (cooling rate) temperature control, and at either reducing (QFM−3.2) or oxidizing (QFM−1) redox conditions. The observed liquid line of descent supports a potential genetic relationship between basaltic shergottites and olivine-phyric shergottites. A peritectic relation where olivine is resorbed to form pyroxene is favored by increased oxygen fugacity; if oxidation during crystallization is more common than presently believed, it may explain why olivine is typically anhedral in olivine-phyric shergottites. Results from a cooling-rate experiment in which the oxygen fugacity was changed during the latter stages of crystallization resulted in olivine with a Cr compositional profile consistent with oxidized isothermal experiments, despite forming primarily under reducing conditions. A similar profile is observed in Tissint olivines, consistent with its redox history. Our results provide insights into the potential influence of oxidation events on the compositional zoning of minor or trace elements in olivine in olivine-phyric basalts.

¹Dwijesh Ray,¹S. Ghosh,¹S.V.S. Murty
Meteoritics & Planetary Science (in Press) Link to Article [DOI: 10.1111/maps.12742]
¹Planetary Sciences Division, Physical Research Laboratory, Ahmedabad, India
Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons

Microtextural study of a single troilite-metal nodule (TMN) from the Katol L6-7 chondrite, a recent fall (May, 2012) in India suggests that the TMN is primarily an aggregate of submicron-scale intergrowth of troilite and kamacite (mean Ni: 6.18 wt%) juxtaposed with intensely fractured silicates, mainly olivine (Fa: 25 mole%), low-Ca pyroxene (Fs: 21.2 mole%), and a large volume of maskelynite. Evidence of shock textures in the TMN indicates a high degree of shock metamorphism that involves plagioclase-maskelynite and olivine-wadsleyite/ringwoodite transformations and formation of quenched metal-sulfide melt textures due to localized shear-induced frictional melting. It is inferred that the TMN formation is an independent, localized event by a high energy impact and its subsequent incorporation in the ejected chondritic fragment of the parent body. Katol chondrite has been calibrated with a peak shock pressure of S5 (~45 GPa) after Stöffler et al. (1991), whereas peak shock pressure within the TMN exceeds the shock facies S6 (>45 GPa) following Bennett and McSween (1996) and Stöffler et al. (1991). Overall, the shock-thermal history of the Katol TMN is dissimilar as compared to the host chondrite.

^1,2A. Calzada-Diaz,³K. H. Joy,^1,2I. A. Crawford,⁴S. Strekopytov
Meteoritics & Planetary Science (in Press) Link to Article [DOI: 10.1111/maps.12737]
¹Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Birkbeck College, London WC1E 7HX, UK
²Centre for Planetary Sciences UCL/Birkbeck, London WC1E 7HX, UK
³School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL, UK
⁴Imaging and Analysis Centre, Natural History Museum, London SW7 5BD, UK
Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons

Meteorites ejected from the surface of the Moon as a result of impact events are an important source of lunar material in addition to Apollo and Luna samples. Here, we report bulk element composition, mineral chemistry, age, and petrography of Miller Range (MIL) 090036 and 090070 lunar meteorites. MIL 090036 and 090070 are both anorthositic regolith breccias consisting of mineral fragments and lithic clasts in a glassy matrix. They are not paired and represent sampling of two distinct regions of the lunar crust that have protoliths similar to ferroan anorthosites. 40Ar-39Ar chronology performed on two subsplits of MIL 090070,33 (a pale clast impact melt and a dark glassy melt component) shows that the sample underwent two main degassing events, one at ~3.88 Ga and another at ~3.65 Ga. The cosmic ray exposure data obtained from MIL 090070 are consistent with a short (~8–9 Ma) exposure close to the lunar surface. Bulk-rock FeO, TiO2, and Th concentrations in both samples were compared with 2-degree Lunar Prospector Gamma Ray Spectrometer (LP-GRS) data sets to determine areas of the lunar surface where the regolith matches the abundances observed on the sample. We find that MIL 090036 bulk rock is compositionally most similar to regolith surrounding the Procellarum KREEP Terrane, whereas MIL 090070 best matches regolith in the feldspathic highlands terrane on the lunar farside. Our results suggest that some areas of the lunar farside crust are composed of ferroan anorthosite, and that the samples shed light on the evolution and impact bombardment history of the ancient lunar highlands.