The fission track records of the Estherville,Nakhla and Odessa meteorites

Investigation of fossil charged-particle track densities in various mineral phases of three meteorites—Estherville, Nakhla and Odessa—coupled with U content determination, has led to the evaluation of various contributions to the total fossil track density, including those due to the spontaneous fission of ²³⁸U and ²⁴⁴Pu. A fission-track age for Estherville of around 4 × 10⁹ yr is found, which is thought to reflect slow cooling of the parent body. A Pu track excess of (106 ± 9): 1 over the spontaneous fission of ²³⁸U is found in Odessa diopside, which is larger than may be allówed on a simple ‘continuous synthesis’ model for the production of heavy elements prior to solar system formation. Possible explanations for this value are discussed, including fractionation of Pu relative to U. No detectable U was found in Nakhla diopside, and a measurable contribution of track densities from the fission of superheavy elements is ruled out on the basis of track-length measurements and laboratory calibration with Fe ions.