The secondary history of Sutter's Mill CM carbonaceous chondrite based on water abundance and the structure of its organic matter from two clasts

Sutter's Mill is a regolith breccia composed of both heavily altered clasts and more reduced xenoliths. Here, we present a detailed investigation of fragments of SM18 and SM51. We have characterized the water content and the mineralogy by infrared (IR) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and the structure of the organic compounds by Raman spectroscopy, to characterize the secondary history of the clasts, including aqueous alteration and thermal metamorphism. The three methods used in this study suggest that SM18 was significantly heated. The amount of water contained in phyllosilicates derived by TGA is estimated to be approximately 3.2 wt%. This value is quite low compared with other CM chondrites that typically range from 6 to 12 wt%. The infrared transmission spectra of SM18 show that the mineralogy of the sample is dominated by a mixture of phyllosilicate and olivine. SM18 shows an intense peak at 11.2 μm indicative of olivine (Fig. 1). If we compare SM18 with other CM and metamorphosed CM chondrites, it shows one of the most intense olivine signatures, and therefore a lower proportion of phyllosilicate minerals. The Raman results tend to support a short‐duration heating hypothesis. In the I_D/I_G versus FWHM‐D diagram, SM18 appears to be unusual compared to most CM samples, and close to the metamorphosed CM chondrites Pecora Escarpment (PCA) 91008 and PCA 02012. In the case of SM51, infrared spectroscopy reveals that olivine is less abundant than in SM18 and the 10 μm silicate feature is more similar to that of moderately altered CM chondrites (like Murchison or Queen Alexandra Range [QUE] 97990). Raman spectroscopy does not clearly point to a heating event for SM51 in the I_D/I_G versus FWHM‐D diagram. However, TGA analysis suggests that SM51 was slightly dehydrated as the amount of water contained in phyllosilicates is approximately 3.7 wt%, which is higher than SM18, but still lower than phyllosilicate water contents in weakly altered CM chondrites. Altogether, these results confirm that fragments with different secondary histories are present within the Sutter's Mill fall. The dehydration that is clearly observed for SM18 is attributed to a short‐duration heating based on the similarity of its Raman spectra to that of PCA 91008. Because of the brecciated nature of Sutter's Mill and the presence of adjacent clasts with different thermal histories, impacts that can efficiently fragment and heat porous materials are the preferred heat source.     

Presolar grains in the CM2 chondrite Sutter's Mill

The Sutter's Mill (SM) carbonaceous chondrite is a regolith breccia, composed predominantly of CM2 clasts with varying degrees of aqueous alteration and thermal metamorphism. An investigation of presolar grains in four Sutter's Mill sections, SM43, SM51, SM2‐4, and SM18, was carried out using NanoSIMS ion mapping technique. A total of 37 C‐anomalous grains and one O‐anomalous grain have been identified, indicating an abundance of 63 ppm for presolar C‐anomalous grains and 2 ppm for presolar oxides. Thirty‐one silicon carbide (SiC), five carbonaceous grains, and one Al‐oxide (Al₂O₃) were confirmed based on their elemental compositions determined by C‐N‐Si and O‐Si‐Mg‐Al isotopic measurements. The overall abundance of SiC grains in Sutter's Mill (55 ppm) is consistent with those in other CM chondrites. The absence of presolar silicates in Sutter's Mill suggests that they were destroyed by aqueous alteration on the parent asteroid. Furthermore, SM2‐4 shows heterogeneous distributions of presolar SiC grains (12–54 ppm) in different matrix areas, indicating that the fine‐grained matrix clasts come from different sources, with various thermal histories, in the solar nebula.     

Chromium isotopic systematics of the Sutter's Mill carbonaceous chondrite: Implications for isotopic heterogeneities of the early solar system

Recent studies have shown that major meteorite groups possess their own characteristic ⁵⁴Cr values, demonstrating the utility of Cr isotopes for identifying genetic relationships between the planetary materials in conjunction with other classical tools, such as oxygen isotopes. In this study, we performed Cr isotope analyses for whole rocks and chemically separated phases of the new CM2 chondrite, Sutter's Mill (SM 43 and 51). The two whole rocks of Sutter's Mill show essentially identical ε⁵⁴Cr excesses (SM 43 = +0.95 ± 0.09ε, SM 51 = +0.88 ± 0.07ε), relative to the Earth. These values are the same within error with that of the CM2‐type Murchison (+0.89 ± 0.08ε), suggesting that parent bodies of Sutter's Mill and Murchison were formed from the same precursor materials in the solar nebula. Large ε⁵⁴Cr excess of up to 29.40ε is observed in the silicate phase of Sutter's Mill, while that of Murchison shows 15.74ε. Importantly, the leachate fractions of both Sutter's Mill and Murchison form a steep linear anticorrelation between ε⁵⁴Cr and ε⁵³Cr, cross‐cutting the positive correlation previously observed in carbonaceous chondrites. The fact that L4 acid leachate fraction contains higher ⁵⁴Cr excesses than that of L5 step designed to dissolve refractory minerals suggests that spinel is not a major ⁵⁴Cr carrier. We also note that L5 contains ⁵³Cr anomalies lower than the solar initial value, suggesting it carries a component of nucleosynthetic anomaly unrelated to the ⁵³Mn decay. We have identified five endmember components of nucleosynthetic origin among the early solar system materials.     

Infrared imaging spectroscopy with micron resolution of Sutter's Mill meteorite grains

Synchrotron‐based Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy are applied with submicrometer spatial resolution to multiple grains of Sutter's Mill meteorite, a regolith breccia with CM1 and CM2 lithologies. The Raman and infrared active functional groups reveal the nature and distribution of organic and mineral components and confirm that SM12 reached higher metamorphism temperatures than SM2. The spatial distributions of carbonates and organic matter are negatively correlated. The spatial distributions of aliphatic organic matter and OH relative to the distributions of silicates in SM2 differ from those in SM12, supporting a hypothesis that the parent body of Sutter's Mill is a combination of multiple bodies with different origins. The high aliphatic CH₂/CH₃ ratios determined from band intensities for SM2 and SM12 grains are similar to those of IDPs and less altered carbonaceous chondrites, and they are significantly higher than those in other CM chondrites and diffuse ISM objects.     

Exposure history of the Sutter's Mill carbonaceous chondrite

The Sutter's Mill (SM) carbonaceous chondrite fell in California on April 22, 2012. The cosmogenic radionuclide data indicate that Sutter's Mill was exposed to cosmic rays for 0.082 ± 0.008 Myr, which is one of the shortest ages for C chondrites, but overlaps with a small cluster at approximately 0.1 Myr. The age is significantly longer than proposed ages that were obtained from cosmogenic noble gas concentrations, which have large uncertainties due to trapped noble gas corrections. The presence of neutron‐capture ⁶⁰Co and ³⁶Cl in SM indicates a minimum preatmospheric radius of approximately 50 cm, and is consistent with a radius of 1–2 m, as derived from the fireball observations. Although a large preatmospheric size was proposed, one fragment (SM18) contains solar cosmic ray–produced short‐lived radionuclides, such as ⁵⁶Co and ⁵¹Cr. This implies that this specimen was less than 2 cm from the preatmospheric surface of Sutter's Mill. Although this conclusion seems surprising, it is consistent with the observation that the meteoroid fragmented high in the atmosphere. The presence of SCR‐produced nuclides is consistent with the high SCR fluxes observed during the last few months before the meteorite's fall, when its orbit was less than 1 AU from the Sun.     

Sutter's Mill dicarboxylic acids as possible tracers of parent‐body alteration processes

Dicarboxylic acids were searched for in three Sutter's Mill (SM) fragments (SM2 collected prerain, SM12, and SM41) and found to occur almost exclusively as linear species of 3‐ to 14‐carbon long. Between these, concentrations were low, with measured quantities typically less than 10 nmole g^?1 of meteorite and a maximum of 6.8 nmole g^?1 of meteorite for suberic acid in SM12. The SM acids' molecular distribution is consistent with a nonbiological origin and differs from those of CMs, such as Murchison or Murray, and of some stones of the C2‐ungrouped Tagish Lake meteorite, where they are abundant and varied. Powder X‐ray diffraction of SM12 and SM41 show them to be dominated by clays/amorphous material, with lesser amounts of Fe‐sulfides, magnetite, and calcite. Thermal gravimetric (TG) analysis shows mass losses up to 1000 °C of 11.4% (SM12) and 9.4% (SM41). These losses are low compared with other clay‐rich carbonaceous chondrites, such as Murchison (14.5%) and Orgueil (21.1%). The TG data are indicative of partially dehydrated clays, in accordance with published work on SM2, for which mineralogical studies suggest asteroidal heating to around 500 °C. In view of these compositional traits and mineralogical features, it is suggested that the dicarboxylic acids observed in the SM fragments we analyzed likely represent a combination of molecular species original to the meteorite as well as secondary products formed during parent‐body alteration processes, such as asteroidal heating.     

Rapid effects of terrestrial alteration on highly siderophile elements in the Sutter's Mill meteorite

The ¹⁸⁷Re-¹⁸⁷Os isotopic systematics of many bulk chondrites plot well beyond analytical uncertainties of a primordial isochron. Limited variations in ¹⁸⁷Os/¹⁸⁸Os, coupled with large variations in Re/Os ratios among chondrites, suggest that this apparently open-system behavior is a result of the comparatively recent gain or loss of Re and/or Os. In order to assess whether or not rapid alteration in the terrestrial environment could be responsible for open-system behavior in chondrites, four pieces of the Sutter's Mill meteorite were examined for Os isotopic systematics and abundances of highly siderophile elements. Pieces SM1 and SM2 were collected prior to a rain event, within 2 days of the fall. Pieces SM51 and SM53 were collected after a rain event. There are significant but minor relative and absolute variations in the abundances of the highly siderophile elements, as well as ¹⁸⁷Os/¹⁸⁸Os among the four pieces. Rhenium-Os isotopic data for SM1 and SM2 plot within analytical uncertainties of a primordial isochron, while powders made from SM51 and SM53 do not. These results suggest that interactions with rain caused some redistribution of Re, and to a lesser extent Os, within small pieces of the meteorite. Thus, Re-Os isotopic systematics of <dm-size pieces of chondrites must be considered susceptible to modification after only a short time on the surface, where exposed to rain.     

Diamond xenolith and matrix organic matter in the Sutter's Mill meteorite measured by C‐XANES

The Sutter's Mill (SM) meteorite fell in El Dorado County, California, on April 22, 2012. This meteorite is a regolith breccia composed of CM chondrite material and at least one xenolithic phase: oldhamite. The meteorite studied here, SM2 (subsample 5), was one of three meteorites collected before it rained extensively on the debris site, thus preserving the original asteroid regolith mineralogy. Two relatively large (10 μm sized) possible diamond grains were observed in SM2‐5 surrounded by fine‐grained matrix. In the present work, we analyzed a focused ion beam (FIB) milled thin section that transected a region containing these two potential diamond grains as well as the surrounding fine‐grained matrix employing carbon and nitrogen X‐ray absorption near‐edge structure (C‐XANES and N‐XANES) spectroscopy using a scanning transmission X‐ray microscope (STXM) (Beamline 5.3.2 at the Advanced Light Source, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory). The STXM analysis revealed that the matrix of SM2‐5 contains C‐rich grains, possibly organic nanoglobules. A single carbonate grain was also detected. The C‐XANES spectrum of the matrix is similar to that of insoluble organic matter (IOM) found in other CM chondrites. However, no significant nitrogen‐bearing functional groups were observed with N‐XANES. One of the possible diamond grains contains a Ca‐bearing inclusion that is not carbonate. C‐XANES features of the diamond‐edges suggest that the diamond might have formed by the CVD process, or in a high‐temperature and ‐pressure environment in the interior of a much larger parent body.     

The amino acid composition of the Sutter's Mill CM2 carbonaceous chondrite

We determined the abundances and enantiomeric compositions of amino acids in Sutter's Mill fragment #2 (designated SM2) recovered prior to heavy rains that fell April 25–26, 2012, and two other meteorite fragments, SM12 and SM51, that were recovered postrain. We also determined the abundance, enantiomeric, and isotopic compositions of amino acids in soil from the recovery site of fragment SM51. The three meteorite stones experienced terrestrial amino acid contamination, as evidenced by the low d/l ratios of several proteinogenic amino acids. The d/l ratios were higher in SM2 than in SM12 and SM51, consistent with rain introducing additional l‐ amino acid contaminants to SM12 and SM51. Higher percentages of glycine, β‐alanine, and γ‐amino‐n‐butyric acid were observed in free form in SM2 and SM51 compared with the soil, suggesting that these free amino acids may be indigenous. Trace levels of d +l‐ β‐aminoisobutyric acid (β‐AIB) observed in all three meteorites are not easily explained as terrestrial contamination, as β‐AIB is rare on Earth and was not detected in the soil. Bulk carbon and nitrogen and isotopic ratios of the SM samples and the soil also indicate terrestrial contamination, as does compound‐specific isotopic analysis of the amino acids in the soil. The amino acid abundances in SM2, the most pristine SM meteorite analyzed here, are approximately 20‐fold lower than in the Murchison CM2 carbonaceous chondrite. This may be due to thermal metamorphism in the Sutter's Mill parent body at temperatures greater than observed for other aqueously altered CM2 meteorites.     

Chemical and physical studies of type 3 chondrites XII: The metamorphic history of CV chondrites and their components

Abstract— The induced thermoluminescence (TL) properties of 16 CV and CV-related chondrites, four CK chondrites and Renazzo (CR2) have been measured in order to investigate their metamorphic history. The petrographic, mineralogical and bulk compositional differences among the CV chondrites indicate that the TL sensitivity of the ～130 °C TL peak is reflecting the abundance of ordered feldspar, especially in chondrule mesostasis, which in turn reflects parent-body metamorphism. The TL properties of 18 samples of homogenized Allende powder heated at a variety of times and temperatures, and cathodoluminescence mosaics of Axtell and Coolidge, showed results consistent with this conclusion. Five refractory inclusions from Allende, and separates from those inclusions, were also examined and yielded trends reflecting variations in mineralogy indicative of high peak temperatures (either metamorphic or igneous) and fairly rapid cooling. The CK chondrites are unique among metamorphosed chondrites in showing no detectable induced TL, which is consistent with literature data that suggests very unusual feldspar in these meteorites. Using TL sensitivity and several mineral systems and allowing for the differences in the oxidized and reduced subgroups, the CV and CV-related meteorites can be divided into petrologic types analogous to those of the ordinary and CO type 3 chondrites. Axtell, Kaba, Leoville, Bali, Arch and ALHA81003 are type 3.0–3.1, while ALH84018, Efremovka, Grosnaja, Allende and Vigarano are type 3.2–3.3 and Coolidge and Loongana 001 are type 3.8. Mokoia is probably a breccia with regions ranging in petrologic type from 3.0 to 3.2. Renazzo often plots at the end of the reduced and oxidized CV chondrite trends, even when those trends diverge, suggesting that in many respects it resembles the unmetamorphosed precursors of the CV chondrites. The low-petrographic types and low-TL peak temperatures of all samples, including the CV3.8 chondrites, indicates metamorphism in the stability field of low feldspar (i.e., <800 °C) and a metamorphic history similar to that of the CO chondrites but unlike that of the ordinary chondrites.     

53Mn‐53Cr dating of aqueously formed carbonates in the CM2 lithology of the Sutter's Mill carbonaceous chondrite

Radiometric dating of secondary minerals can be used to constrain the timing of aqueous alteration on meteoritic parent bodies. Dolomite is a well‐documented secondary mineral in CM chondrites, and is thought to have formed by precipitation from an aqueous fluid on the CM parent body within several million years of accretion. The petrographic context of crosscutting dolomite veins indicates that aqueous alteration occurred in situ, rather than in the nebular setting. Here, we present ⁵³Mn‐⁵³Cr systematics for dolomite grains in Sutter's Mill section SM51‐1. The Mn‐Cr isotope data show well‐resolved excesses of ⁵³Cr correlated with ⁵⁵Mn/⁵²Cr ratio, which we interpret as evidence for the in situ decay of radioactive ⁵³Mn. After correcting for the relative sensitivities of Mn and Cr using a synthetic Mn‐ and Cr‐bearing calcite standard, the data yield an isochron with slope corresponding to an initial ⁵³Mn/⁵⁵Mn ratio of 3.42 ± 0.86 × 10^?6. The reported error includes systematic uncertainty from the relative sensitivity factor. When calculated relative to the U‐corrected Pb‐Pb absolute age of the D'Orbigny angrite, Sutter's Mill dolomites give a formation age between 4564.8 and 4562.2 Ma (2.4–5.0 Myr after the birth of the solar system). This age is contemporaneous with previously reported ages for secondary carbonates in CM and CI chondrites. Consistent carbonate precipitation ages between the carbonaceous chondrite groups suggest that aqueous alteration was a common process during the early stages of parent body formation, probably occurring via heating from internal ²⁶Al decay. The high‐precision isochron for Sutter's Mill dolomite indicates that late‐stage processing did not reach temperatures that were high enough to further disturb the Mn‐Cr isochron.     

Primordial and cosmogenic noble gases in the Sutter's Mill CM chondrite

The Sutter's Mill (SM) CM chondrite fell in California in 2012. The CM chondrite group is one of the most primitive, consisting of unequilibrated minerals, but some of them have experienced complex processes occurring on their parent body, such as aqueous alteration, thermal metamorphism, brecciation, and solar wind implantation. We have determined noble gas concentrations and isotopic compositions for SM samples using a stepped heating gas extraction method, in addition to mineralogical observation of the specimens. The primordial noble gas abundances, especially the P3 component trapped in presolar diamonds, confirm the classification of SM as a CM chondrite. The mineralogical features of SM indicate that it experienced mild thermal alteration after aqueous alteration. The heating temperature is estimated to be <350 °C based on the release profile of primordial ³⁶Ar. The presence of a Ni‐rich Fe‐Ni metal suggests that a minor part of SM has experienced heating at >500 °C. The variation in the heating temperature of thermal alteration is consistent with the texture as a breccia. The heterogeneous distribution of solar wind noble gases is also consistent with it. The cosmic‐ray exposure (CRE) age for SM is calculated to be 0.059 ± 0.023 Myr based on cosmogenic ²¹Ne by considering trapped noble gases as solar wind, the terrestrial atmosphere, P1 (or Q), P3, A2, and G components. The CRE age lies at the shorter end of the CRE age distribution of the CM chondrite group.     

Mid‐infrared study of stones from the Sutter's Mill meteorite

The Sutter's Mill meteorite fell in northern California on April 22, 2012. Several fragments of the meteorite were recovered, some of them shortly after the fall, others several days later after a heavy rainstorm. In this work, we analyzed several samples of four fragments―SM2, SM12, SM20, and SM30―from the Sutter's Mill meteorite with two infrared (IR) microscopes operating in the 4000–650 cm^?1 (2.5–15.4 μm) range. Spectra show absorption features associated with minerals such as olivines, phyllosilicates, carbonates, and possibly pyroxenes, as well as organics. Spectra of specific minerals vary from one particle to another within a given stone, and even within a single particle, indicating a nonuniform mineral composition. Infrared features associated with aliphatic CH₂ and CH₃ groups associated with organics are also seen in several spectra. However, the presence of organics in the samples studied is not clear because these features overlap with carbonate overtone bands. Finally, other samples collected within days after the rainstorm show evidence for bacterial terrestrial contamination, which indicates how quickly meteorites can be contaminated on such small scales.     

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Fragments of the Sutter's Mill meteorite fall collected by NASA Ames and SETI Institute meteor astronomer Dr. Peter Jenniskens in the evening of Tuesday April 24, 2012, two days after the fall, before rain hit the area. Given the number SM2, these fragments were found in Henningsen‐Lotus Park (38.8029 N, 120.9085 E), one of 78 reported fi nds from this fall. Photo: NASA/Eric James..     

Heating experiments of the Tagish Lake meteorite: Investigation of the effects of short‐term heating on chondritic organics

We present in this study the effects of short‐term heating on organics in the Tagish Lake meteorite and how the difference in the heating conditions can modify the organic matter (OM) in a way that complicates the interpretation of a parent body's heating extent with common cosmothermometers. The kinetics of short‐term heating and its influence on the organic structure are not well understood, and any study of OM is further complicated by the complex alteration processes of the thermally metamorphosed carbonaceous chondrites—potential analogues of the target asteroid Ryugu of the Hayabusa2 mission—which had experienced posthydration, short‐duration local heating. In an attempt to understand the effects of short‐term heating on chondritic OM, we investigated the change in the OM contents of the experimentally heated Tagish Lake meteorite samples using Raman spectroscopy, scanning transmission X‐ray microscopy utilizing X‐ray absorption near edge structure spectroscopy, and ultraperformance liquid chromatography fluorescence detection and quadrupole time of flight hybrid mass spectrometry. Our experiment suggests that graphitization of OM did not take place despite the samples being heated to 900 °C for 96 h, as the OM maturity trend was influenced by the heating conditions, kinetics, and the nature of the OM precursor, such as the presence of abundant oxygenated moieties. Although both the intensity of the 1s?σ* exciton cannot be used to accurately interpret the peak metamorphic temperature of the experimentally heated Tagish Lake sample, the Raman graphite band widths of the heated products significantly differ from that of chondritic OM modified by long‐term internal heating.     

Detection and rapid recovery of the Sutter's Mill meteorite fall as a model for future recoveries worldwide

The Sutter's Mill C‐type meteorite fall occurred on 22 April 2012 in and around the town of Coloma, California. The exact location of the meteorite fall was determined within hours of the event using a combination of eyewitness reports, weather radar imagery, and seismometry data. Recovery of the first meteorites occurred within 2 days and continued for months afterward. The recovery effort included local citizens, scientists, and meteorite hunters, and featured coordination efforts by local scientific institutions. Scientific analysis of the collected meteorites revealed characteristics that were available for study only because the rapid collection of samples had minimized terrestrial contamination/alteration. This combination of factors—rapid and accurate location of the event, participation in the meteorite search by the public, and coordinated scientific investigation of recovered samples—is a model that was widely beneficial and should be emulated in future meteorite falls. The tools necessary to recreate the Sutter's Mill recovery are available, but are currently underutilized in much of the world. Weather radar networks, scientific institutions with interest in meteoritics, and the interested public are available globally. Therefore, it is possible to repeat the Sutter's Mill recovery model for future meteorite falls around the world, each for relatively little cost with a dedicated researcher. Doing so will significantly increase the number of fresh meteorite falls available for study, provide meteorite material that can serve as the nuclei of new meteorite collections, and will improve the public visibility of meteoritics research.     

Consortium study of the unusual H chondrite regolith breccia,Noblesville

Abstract— The Noblesville meteorite is a genomict, regolith breccia (H6 clasts in H4 matrix). Mössbauer analysis confirms that Noblesville is unusually fresh, not surprising in view of its recovery immediately after its fall. It resembles “normal” H4–6 chondrites in its chemical composition and induced thermoluminescence (TL) levels. Thus, at least in its contents of volatile trace elements, Noblesville differs from other H chondrite, class A regolith breccias. Noblesville's small pre-atmospheric mass and fall near Solar maximum and/or its peculiar orbit (with perihelion <0.8 AU as shown by natural TL intensity) may partly explain its levels of cosmogenic radionuclides. Its cosmic ray exposure age of ～ 44 Ma, is long, is equalled or exceeded by <3% of all H chondrites, and also differs from the 33 ± 3 Ma mean exposure age peak of other H chondrite regolith breccias. One whole-rock aliquot has a high, but not unmatched, ¹²⁹Xe/¹³²Xe of 1.88. While Noblesville is now among the chondritic regolithic breccias richest in solar gases, elemental ratios indicate some loss, especially of He, perhaps b; impacts in the regolith that heated individual grains. While general shock-loading levels in Noblesville did not exceed 4 GPa, individual clasts record shock levels of 5–10 GPa, doubtless acquired prior to lithification of the whole-rock meteoroid.     

Mineralogy and petrography of C asteroid regolith: The Sutter's Mill CM meteorite

Based upon our characterization of three separate stones by electron and X‐ray beam analyses, computed X‐ray microtomography, Raman microspectrometry, and visible‐IR spectrometry, Sutter's Mill is a unique regolith breccia consisting mainly of various CM lithologies. Most samples resemble existing available CM2 chondrites, consisting of chondrules and calcium‐aluminum‐rich inclusion (CAI) set within phyllosilicate‐dominated matrix (mainly serpentine), pyrrhotite, pentlandite, tochilinite, and variable amounts of Ca‐Mg‐Fe carbonates. Some lithologies have witnessed sufficient thermal metamorphism to transform phyllosilicates into fine‐grained olivine, tochilinite into troilite, and destroy carbonates. One finely comminuted lithology contains xenolithic materials (enstatite, Fe‐Cr phosphides) suggesting impact of a reduced asteroid (E or M class) onto the main Sutter's Mill parent asteroid, which was probably a C class asteroid. One can use Sutter's Mill to help predict what will be found on the surfaces of C class asteroids such as Ceres and the target asteroids of the OSIRIS‐REx and Hayabusa 2 sample return missions (which will visit predominantly primitive asteroids). C class asteroid regolith may well contain a mixture of hydrated and thermally dehydrated indigenous materials as well as a significant admixture of exogenous material would be essential to the successful interpretation of mineralogical and bulk compositional data.     

Testing variations within the Tagish Lake meteorite—II: Whole‐rock geochemistry of pristine samples

Four pristine specimens of the Tagish Lake C2 chondrite meteorite were previously determined through mineralogy, petrology, and organic chemistry to have been affected by aqueous alteration in the order (from least to most altered) TL5b < TL11h < TL11i, and TL11v as a mixture of the other specimens (Herd et al. 2011 ; Blinova et al. 2014 ). Here, we report the whole‐rock data for a total of 65 elements for the same four Tagish Lake samples as determined by ICP‐MS and ICP‐AES (utilizing the Parr bomb digestion method on small samples, approximately 50 mg), and by INAA. Our data demonstrate that the determined aqueous alteration sequence has a positive correlation with trace elements, such as K and Br that are mobile during aqueous alteration, which appear to be controlled by an increase of phyllosilicates from least to most altered samples. Yet, the homogeneity of other elements suggests that elemental mass transfer occurred on a localized scale and aqueous alteration was isochemical for these elements, similar to other primitive carbonaceous chondrites. By plotting data from three samples (TL5b, TL11h, and TL11i) on a Zn/Mn versus Sc/Mn diagram, we also confirm that the Tagish Lake meteorite is not a simple mixture of CI and CM material.     

Characterization of Antarctic micrometeorites by thermoluminescence

Abstract— In order to explore the nature and history of micrometeorites, we have measured the thermoluminescence (TL) properties of four micrometeorites, three cosmic spherules, and one irregular scoriaceous particle, that we found in a survey of 17 micrometeorites. These micrometeorites have TL sensitivities ranging from 0.017 ± 0.002 to 0.087 ± 0.009 (on a scale normalized to 4 mg of the H3.9 chondrite Dhajala). The four micrometeorites have very similar TL peak temperatures and TL peak widths, and these distinguish them from CI, most CM, CV, CO, and ordinary chondrites. However, the TL properties of these micrometeorites closely resemble those of the unusual CM chondrite MacAlpine Hills (MAC) 87300 and terrestrial forsterites. Heating experiments on submillimeter chips of a CM chondrite and a H5 chondrite suggest that these TL properties are have not been significantly affected by atmospheric passage. Thus we suggest that there is no simple linkage between these micrometeorites and the established meteorite classes, and that forsterite is an important component of these micrometeorites, as it is in many primitive solar system materials.