¹Scott A. Eckley et al. (>10)
Journal of Geophysical Research (Planets)(in Press) Link to Article [https://doi.org/10.1029/2024JE008583]
¹Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science Division, Amentum – JETS2, NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX, USA
Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons

Double drive tube 73001/2 was collected on the Light Mantle Deposit in the Taurus-Littrow Valley by Apollo 17 astronauts. It is a 4-cm diameter core that sampled up to 70 cm deep in a lunar landslide at the base of the North Massif. NASA kept these samples pristine and untouched in anticipation of advanced future analytical techniques, such as high-resolution X-ray computed tomography (XCT). Double drive tube 73001/2 was selected to be studied as part of the Apollo Next Generation Sample Analysis (ANGSA) program and was opened in November 2019 (73002) and February 2022 (73001). We discuss how XCT was utilized during the preliminary examination of these samples. This technique, which was unavailable the last time an Apollo drive tube was opened (1993), provides a three-dimensional (3-D) image of the interior of opaque objects. Prior to opening, high-resolution scans were collected of the full length of both cores, providing a novel 3-D archive of the intact lunar regolith. After opening, 352 > 4 mm particles were individually bagged and scanned, allowing for their lithological classification. We provide an example of the robustness of the individual particle data by analyzing ilmenite crystals (n = 350) in fourteen high-Ti basalt particles. Our results show that ilmenite generally has highly anisotropic shapes and can take on various external morphologies, indicating that 73001/2 likely sampled several lunar basalt flows. This paper illustrates the utility of XCT for curatorial and scientific purposes during ANGSA and demonstrates its value for future sample return missions.

^1,2Shuai-Yi Qu,^3,4Yu-Yan Sara Zhao,^5,6He Cui,⁶Shuai Zhang,⁷Xiuqin Yang,¹Honglei Lin,⁸Chao Qi,^4,9Xiongyao Li,^4,9Jianzhong Liu
Journal of Geophysical Research (Planets)(in Press) Link to Article [https://doi.org/10.1029/2024JE008688]
¹Key Laboratory of Earth and Planetary Physics, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
²University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
³Research Center for Planetary Science, College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, China
⁴CAS Center for Excellence in Comparative Planetology, Hefei, China
⁵College of Life Sciences, Wuchang University of Technology, Wuhan, China
⁶Technical Center of Qingdao Customs, Qingdao, China
⁷State Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry, Institute of Geochemistry Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang, China
⁸Center for High Pressure Science and Technology Advanced Research, Beijing, China
⁹Center for Lunar and Planetary Sciences, Institute of Geochemistry Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang, China
Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons

Chlorine-bearing salts mixed with other minerals exposed to ultraviolet light participate in chlorine redox cycles on the Martian surface. Previous studies have shown that Fe^III sulfates can exclusively produce perchlorate by chloride photooxidation, but the mechanisms and effective scopes remain unclear. In this study, we investigated this perspective by conducting two main photochemical experiments using ultraviolet light 254 nm. Chloride oxidation experiments examined the effects of different Fe minerals (i.e., Fe^II sulfates, Fe^III sulfates, Fe^III chlorides, Fe^III nitrates, pyrrhotite, siderite and nontronite) and acidified non-Fe sulfates (Ca-, Mg-, Na-, and K- sulfates). Photocatalytic conversion experiments assessed the conversion products of perchlorate and chlorate in the presence of different sulfates (Fe^III, Ca, Mg, Na, and K). Our results showed that the ClO₃⁻/ClO₄⁻ molar ratios <<1 reported for Fe^III sulfates did not occur in any non-Fe sulfates, even after acidification by concentrated H₂SO₄. Other Fe salts, such as Fe^II sulfates, Fe^III nitrates, and Fe^III chlorides, also showed preferential ClO₄⁻ production, whereas pyrrhotite, siderite and nontronite produced more ClO₃⁻ than ClO₄⁻. Photocatalytic conversion experiments starting with NaClO₃ and NaClO₄ demonstrated that Fe^III can facilitate the direct NaClO₃-to-NaClO₄ conversion without producing Cl⁻ and inhibit the photolysis of NaClO₄. Our study highlights the unique role of hygroscopic Fe salts (both Fe^II and Fe^III) in the production and preservation of perchlorate. Mineral surfaces and water vapor may play essential roles in the chlorine redox cycle. The likely coexistence of perchlorate and Fe^III salts has important implications for liquid water on the present cold and arid Mars.

¹Atsushi Takenouchi,²Hirochika Sumino,^3,4Hideyuki Hayashi,⁵Takashi Mikouchi,⁶Martin Bizzarro
Meteoritics & Planetary Science (in Press) Open Access Link to Article [https://doi.org/10.1111/maps.70055]
¹Kyoto University Museum, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
²Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
³Department of Earth and Planetary Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
⁴National Museum of Nature and Science, Ibaraki, Japan
⁵The University Museum, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
⁶Center for Star and Planet Formation, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons

Angrites and eucrites are among the oldest basaltic rocks in the solar system. However, the shock histories of these meteorite groups differ markedly, as most angrites show little to no evidence of shock metamorphism. While some angrites exhibit weak wavy extinction in olivine, indicative of low-level shock, only two—Northwest Africa (NWA) 1670 and NWA 7203—are known to preserve significant shock features such as shock melt veins. To better constrain the shock history of angrites, we performed noble gas analyses on the rare shock-metamorphosed angrite NWA 7203 to determine its cosmic ray exposure and gas retention ages. Neon in NWA 7203 is entirely cosmogenic, and combined neon and argon data yield a cosmic ray exposure age of 22.7 ± 3.1 Ma (2σ). This age nominally differs from that of the other shocked angrite, NWA 1670, but is comparable to that of the unshocked angrite NWA 7812. NWA 7203 may have been ejected from a rubble pile-like asteroid composed of both shocked and unshocked materials. Two distinct 40Ar/39Ar apparent ages, 3.38 ± 0.10 Ga and 1.41 ± 0.11 Ga, were obtained, likely reflecting variable argon loss during a single impact-induced thermal event that occurred no earlier than 1.41 ± 0.11 Ga (2σ). This is the first report for the shock metamorphic age of an angrite. Our results reinforce the view that even shocked angrites lack clear evidence of a catastrophic disruption of their parent body (>100 km) hypothesized to have occurred in the early solar system. To resolve this conundrum, we propose that angrites may have experienced extensive melting during such an event, which suppressed or erased conventional shock features. If this impact occurred near the time of their crystallization (>4564 Ma), it may have been a “hot shock” event driven by heat from short-lived radionuclides. Such an event could have generated large volumes of shock melt, from which quenched angrites subsequently formed. We suggest that differentiated planetary bodies may have commonly undergone such early-stage disruption events during the formative epoch of the solar system.

^1,2Ben-Xun Su,¹Jing Wang,¹Qi-Qi Pan,¹Yan Xiao,¹Meng-Meng Cu
Journal of the Geological Society 182, Link to Article [https://doi.org/10.1144/jgs2024-19]
¹State Key Laboratory of Lithospheric and Environmental Coevolution, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, China
²College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China

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¹Stephanie L. Halwa,¹Katherine H. Joy,¹Romain Tartèse,^1,2Samantha K. Bell
Meteoritics & Planetary Science (in Press) Open Access Link to Article [https://doi.org/10.1111/maps.70057]
¹Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
²Stratum Reservoir AS, Sandnes, Norway
Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons

The lunar regolith contains a rich history of Solar System impact events and solar activity. Many future missions will land in the south polar region of the Moon, a heavily impact cratered highland terrain, similar to the Apollo 16 landing site. In preparation, it is important to understand regolith processes and the upper stratigraphy of the regolith in typical highlands regions. In this study, we used a nondestructive scanning electron microscope with the QEMSCAN software to analyze the mineralogical compositions and maturities of regolith samples from various depths within four Apollo 16 double drive tubes. Our results support previous analyses made using other techniques that there is a lack of stratigraphic correlation across the central and southern regions of the Apollo 16 landing site, where the cores show lateral and vertical heterogeneities. Our results also show that QEMSCAN is a powerful tool for rapid, quantitative assessment of regolith characteristics. Our findings can serve as an analog for south polar regolith, providing context for upcoming missions looking to sample the subsurface regolith in the south polar region.

^1,2Lei Jin,³Tsz Wai Lo,³Ian Tong Fong
Research in Astronom and Astrophysics 25, 075008 Link to Article [DOI 10.1088/1674-4527/add8fa]
¹State Key Laboratory of Lunar and Planetary Sciences, Macau University of Science and Technology, Macau 999078, China
²CNSA Macau Center for Space Exploration and Science, Macau 999078, China
³Premier School Affiliated to Hou Kong Middle School, Macau 999078, China

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¹Pengyue Wang (王鹏越),²Edward Cloutis,¹Ye Su (苏烨),¹Man-To Hui (许文韬)
The Astrophysical Journal Letters 985, L18 Open Access Link to Article [DOI 10.3847/2041-8213/adce6e]
¹State Key Laboratory of Lunar and Planetary Sciences, Macau University of Science and Technology, Macau, People’s Republic of China
²Department of Geography, University of Winnipeg, Winnipeg, Canada

Most near-Earth objects are thought to originate from the collisional fragments of the main asteroid belt. One question that remains to be resolved is the proportion of near-Earth objects sampling the core area material of the parent body to the outer layers. In this study, we developed a method to determine the petrologic type of ordinary chondrite parent bodies based on reflectance spectroscopy. We also calculated the petrologic type of asteroid (25143) Itokawa, which is consistent with the returned samples from the JAXA Hayabusa mission. Finally, we calculate the petrologic type of 28 LL near-Earth asteroids. Our results show that the surface material of most LL chondrite near-Earth asteroids is of petrologic grade higher than 4. The ratio of LL chondrite near-Earth asteroids with high petrologic type (5 and 6) to LL chondrite near-Earth asteroids with low petrologic type is 0.79. This also means that LL chondrite near-Earth asteroids may originate primarily from the core area of the main belt parent body or bodies.

^1,2,3Mariona Badenas-Agusti,⁴Siyi Xu (许偲艺),²Andrew Vanderburg,²Kishalay De,⁵Patrick Dufour,^1,4Laura K Rogers,^2,6Susana Hoyos,⁷Simon Blouin,²Javier Viaña,¹Amy Bonsor,⁶Ben Zuckerman
Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 540, 746-773 Open Access Link to Article [https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/staf777]
¹Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, Madingley Road, Cambridge, CB3 0HA, UK
²Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
³Department of Physics and Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
⁴Gemini Observatory/NSF’s NOIRLab, 950 North Cherry Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85719, USA
⁵Département de Physique, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec H3C 3J7, Canada
⁶Department of Earth, Planetary, and Space Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1567, USA
⁷Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8W 2Y2, Canad

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^1,2Patrick M. Shober,²Jeremie Vaubaillon,^3,4Hadrien A. R. Devillepoix,^3,4Eleanor K. Sansom,^3,4Sophie E. Deam,^2,5Simon Anghel,²Francois Colas,⁶Pierre Vernazza,⁷Brigitte Zanda
Meteoritics & Planetary Science (in Press) Link to Article [https://doi.org/10.1111/maps.70041]
¹Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science Directorate (ARES), NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas, USA
²LTE, Observatoire de Paris, Université PSL, Sorbonne Université, Université de Lille, LNE, CNRS, Paris, France
³Space Science and Technology Centre, School of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Curtin University, Perth, WA, Australia
⁴International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research, Curtin University, Perth, WA, Australia
⁵Astronomical Institute of the Romanian Academy, Bucharest, Romania
⁶Institut de Minéralogie, Physique des Matériaux et Cosmochimie, Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, Paris, France
⁷Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Marseille, Aix Marseille Université, Aix-Marseille University, CNRS, CNES, LAM, Institut Origines, Marseille, France
Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons

Instrumentally determined pre-atmospheric orbits of meteorites offer crucial constraints on the provenance of extraterrestrial material and the dynamical pathways that deliver it to Earth. However, recovery efforts are focused on larger and slower impacts due to their higher survival probabilities and ease of detection. In this study, we investigate the prevalence of these biases in the population of recovered meteorites with known orbits. We compiled a data set of 75 meteorites with triangulated trajectories and compared their orbits to 538 potential 1 g meteorite-dropping fireballs detected by the Global Fireball Observatory, the European Fireball Network, and the Fireball Recovery and InterPlanetary Observation Network. Our results reveal that objects with small semi-major axis values (a1.8 au) appear 2–3 more often than expected. The current sample of meteorites with known orbits does not reflect the sources of meteorites in our collections, and it is essential to account for search and recovery biases to obtain a more representative understanding of meteorite source contributions.

Kecheng Du^a,b et al. (>5)

Icarus (in Press) Link to Article [https://doi.org/10.1016/j.icarus.2025.116821]
^aCollege of Surveying and Geo-Informatics, Tongji University, Shanghai, China
^bShanghai Key Laboratory for Planetary Mapping and Remote Sensing for Deep Space Exploration, Tongji University, Shanghai, China
Copyright Elsevier

In January 2019, China’s Chang’e-4 (CE-4) spacecraft successfully landed in Von Kármán crater on the farside of the Moon. During nearly six years of operation until November 2024, the Visible and Near-infrared Image Spectrometer (VNIS) onboard the Yutu-2 rover acquired in-situ spectral data along an approximately 1600 m traverse path, offering critical opportunities to investigate subtle mineralogical variations within the patrol region. In this study, we analyzed these spectral data using a sparse spectral decomposition method with TiO2 constraints to quantitatively estimate the abundances of six lunar minerals, including high‑calcium pyroxene, low-calcium pyroxene, olivine, plagioclase, ilmenite and agglutinate/glass. We further examined the mineralogical properties of regolith and rocks in Yutu-2’s patrol area to identify trends and correlations in compositional variations. By comparing results with Kaguya Multiband Imager data products, we identified a gradual decreasing spatial distribution in plagioclase abundance along the traverse path, likely attributable to ejecta from the Zhinyu crater. Furthermore, analysis of Moon Mineral Mapper (M3) data revealed samples with similar spectral characteristics near Zhinyu crater, supporting this hypothesis. Additionally, the impact of secondary impact craters on local regions was qualitatively and quantitatively assessed using VNIS spectral features and agglutinate/glass abundance. These findings enhance understanding of the complex origin and evolution of materials at the CE-4 landing site region.