^1,2Maurizio Pajola, ²Ted Roush, ^2,3Cristina Dalle Ore, ⁴Giuseppe A. Marzo, ⁵Emanuele Simioni
Planetary and Space Science (in Press) Link to Article [https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pss.2018.02.016]
¹Universities Space Research Association, NASA NPP Program1, USA
²NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, 94035, USA
³Carl Sagan Center, SETI Institute, Mountain View, CA, 94043, USA
⁴ENEA C. R. Casaccia, 00123, Roma, Italy
⁵INAF, Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova, Vicolo dell’Osservatorio 5, 35122, Padova, Italy

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^1,2,3,4M. Van Ginneken, ¹M.J. Genge, ⁵R.P. Harvey
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta (in Press) Link to Article [https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gca.2018.02.041]
¹IARC, Department of Earth Science and Engineering, Imperial College London, Exhibition Road, London SW7 2AZ, UK
²Department of Earth Science, The Natural History Museum, London SW7 2BT, UK
³Department of Analytical, Environmental and Geo-Chemistry, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050 Brussel, Belgium1
⁴Laboratoire G-Time, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Franklin Rooseveltlaan 50, 1050 Brussel, Belgium1
⁵Department of Geological Sciences, 112 A. W. Smith Building, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH 44106-7216, USA
Copyright Elsevier

We report on the discovery of microtektites (microscopic impact glass spherules) in a glacial moraine near Larkman Nunatak in the Transantarctic Mountains, Antarctica. The microtektites were identified based on their physical and chemical properties. Major and trace element compositions of the particles suggest that they may be related to the Australasian strewn field. This would further extend the current strewn field ∼800 km southward. Depletion in volatiles and enrichment in refractory elements in Larkman Nunatak microtektites fit the volatilization trend defined by Australasian microtektites, suggesting that they may represent a new highly vapor fractionated end-member thereof. This observation is supported by their low vesicularity and absence of mineral inclusions. This discovery has significant implications for the formation of microtektites (i.e. their evolution with respect to the distance from the source crater). Finally, the discovery of potentially old (i.e. 0.8 Ma) microtektites in moraine has implications for the stability of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet in the Larkman Nunatak area over the last ∼1 Ma and, as a consequence, the high efficiency of such moraines as traps for other extraterrestrial materials (e.g. micrometeorites and meteoritic ablation debris).