Possible fluid-rock interactions on differentiated asteroids recorded in eucritic meteorites

The eucritic meteorites are basaltic rocks that originate from the upper part of the crust of some small bodies as exemplified possibly by asteroid 4-Vesta. A few eucrites appear to have been modified by different degrees of a late stage alteration process that caused significant variations in mineralogy. Three distinct alteration stages are identified: (1) Fe-enrichment along the cracks that cross cut the pyroxene crystals (“Fe-metasomatism”); secondary olivine and minute amounts of troilite are found only occasionally in cracks at this stage; (2) deposits of Fe-rich olivine (Fa_64-86) and minor amounts of troilite are frequent inside the cracks; sporadic secondary Ca-rich plagioclase (An_97-98) is associated with the fayalitic olivine; (3) at this stage, the Fe-enrichment of the pyroxene is accompanied by a marked Al-depletion; moreover, secondary Ca-rich plagioclase is more frequent and partly fills some cracks or rims of the primary plagioclase crystals. The composition of the secondary phases on one hand, the lack of incompatible trace element enrichment in the metasomatized pyroxenes on the other hand, rule out a silicate melt as the metasomatic agent. Although no hydrous phase has been yet identified in the studied samples, aqueous fluids are plausible candidates for explaining the deposits of ferroan olivine and anorthitic plagioclase inside the fractures of the studied unequilibrated eucrites.     

Mineralogy and petrology of silicate inclusions in iron meteorites

Silicate inclusions in 17 iron meteorites have been analyzed by the electron microprobe and classified, according to their phase assemblages, compositions, and textures, into three major types: Odessa, Copiapo, and Weekeroo Station, and three miscellaneous types: Enon, Kendall County, and Netschaëvo. Phase compositions in both Odessa- and Copiapo-type inclusions are very similar, but the two types are different in texture and constituent phases. Weekeroo Station-type inclusions are very different in every respect from other inclusions.For Odessa- and Copiapo-type inclusions, the distribution coefficients of Fe²⁺ and Mg in coexisting orthopyroxene and clinopyroxene indicate equilibration temperatures of 1,000° C, and the Ca/(Ca+Mg) ratios indicate temperatures of 900° C to 1,000° C. Equilibration temperatures determined for chromite-olivine pairs have a higher range of 1,154° C to 1,335° C. Minor element distributions among coexisting ferromagnesian silicates in these inclusions follow consistent patterns and are constant for any given sample, suggesting equilibrium assemblages. Major and minor element distributions for Weekeroo Station inclusions are anomalous, indicating nonequilibrium.Compositional data, the fragmentary shapes of many inclusions, the highly differentiated characteristic of two types of inclusions, the apparent disequilibrium between kamacite in inclusions and kamacite of the iron host, and the relict chondrules found in Netschaëvo suggest that many of the inclusions did not form cogenetically with the iron host, but represent pre-existing stony material that was taken up by an iron melt, probably not in the core of the parent body (or bodies).     

Pallasite meteorites—mineralogy,petrology and geochemistry

Pallasites are highly differentiated meteorites and provide a unique sample from the deep interiors of solar system parent bodies. They contain evidence of the former existence of one or more residual melts. Olivine is a major phase. Its primary shape is rounded; the angular crystals in many pallasites are secondary. Tubular inclusions are widespread. They perhaps are the residence of CO₂, released during laboratory heating experiments. Phosphoran olivine, a new variety of olivine containing 4–5 wt% P₂O₅, occurs in a few pallasites. Its Fe/Mg ratio is apparently independent of the host olivine composition.Pyroxene (not previously described from pallasites) occurs in symplectic intergrowths in seven meteorites. Compositionally, it lies in the gap between pyroxenes in chondrites and most irons. There are two groups: Fs_{11.6 ± 0.2} and Fs_{16.7 ± 0.2} The pyroxene contains exceptionally low Ca (< 0.1–0.2 wt%) and there is an indication of an inverse relation between Fe and Ca.Modal analyses and density measurements were made on all available specimens and bulk compositions were calculated. The ‘average’ pallasite contains 65 vol. % olivine and 50.5 wt % total Fe. Many of the densities of pallasites cluster around that calculated for close-packed olivine.Pallasites are exotic cumulates. Their textures resemble terrestrial cumulates, as does the presence of olivine and chromite. The metal texture resembles a solidified intercumulus liquid. Those pallasites containing olivine in excess of close-packing were subjected to adcumulus growth, thereby also explaining the widespread mutual borders.There is abundant evidence of deformation. For olivines this includes their fragmental shape and kink banding. Troilite formed a eutectic-like melt with kamacite: pieces of spalled olivine and schreibersite were injected into and captured by this melt. Troilite polycrystallinity resulted from the deformation. This deformation occurred while the pallasites were still deeply buried, resulting in incipient spheroidization of olivine fragments, including the formation of elongate, rounded crystals. A later, lower temperature deformation disrupted plessite.Pallasites formed in multiple parent bodies by processes that recurred in several places within the solar system, as shown by the mineralogical and textural similarities between pallasites that differ in their isotopic and trace element compositions. Type IIIB irons still seem the most likely associated meteorites.Two new pallasites, Dora and Rawlinna, are described briefly.     

Experimental petrology: Quantitative boundaries for petrogenesis

The paper is an overview of the current status on experimental petrology — its objectives and its major role in solving problems related to various earth processes. It describes how investigations related to solid-solid transitions, dehydration or decarbonation reactions, and melting studies have helped to formulate petrological models for the earth’s internal structure. It also describes how measurements of physical properties of minerals, melts and vapour under extreme conditions have provided vital information of fluid dynamics of magmatic systems. The paper narrates the role of experimental petrology in calibrating geophysical processes with petrological consequences. Model P-T-X (SiO₂)-fluid systems are considered to emphasize the role of various gas species in shifting the solidus in a P-T space, in degrees of melting and composition of the melt. Synthetic models and study of whole rock systems are considered to discuss the zonation and metasomatic processes in the mantle of the earth. The paper is also concerned with mantle convection and the uprise of thermal plumes, particularly, in the oceanic environment. It discusses the petrological structures associated with the plume and shows how static petrological maps are modified by the dynamics of the plumes.     

Geochemistry, petrology and ages of the lunar meteorites Kalahari 008 and 009: New constraints on early lunar evolution

Kalahari 008 and 009 are two lunar meteorites that were found close to each other in Botswana. Kalahari 008 is a typical lunar anorthositic breccia; Kalahari 009 a monomict breccia with basaltic composition and mineralogy. Based on minor and trace elements Kalahari 009 is classified as VLT (very-low-Ti) mare basalt with extremely low contents of incompatible elements, including the REE. The Lu-Hf data define an age of 4286 ± 95 Ma indicating that Kalahari 009 is one of the oldest known basalt samples from the Moon. It provides evidence for lunar basalt volcanism prior to 4.1 Ga (pre-Nectarian) and may represent the first sample from a cryptomare. The very radiogenic initial ¹⁷⁶Hf/¹⁷⁷Hf (εHf = +12.9 ± 4.6), the low REE, Th and Ti concentrations indicate that Kalahari 009 formed from re-melting of mantle material that had undergone strong incompatible trace element depletion early in lunar history. This unusually depleted composition points toward a hitherto unsampled basalt source region for the lunar interior that may represent a new depleted endmember source for low-Ti mare basalt volcanism. Apparently, the Moon became chemically very heterogeneous at an early stage in its history and different cumulate sources are responsible for the diverse mare basalt types.Evidence that Kalahari 008 and 009 may be paired includes the similar fayalite content of their olivine, the identical initial Hf isotope composition, the exceptionally low exposure ages of both rocks and the fact that they were found close to each other. Since cryptomaria are covered by highland ejecta, it is possible that these rocks are from the boundary area, where basalt deposits are covered by highland ejecta. The concentrations of cosmogenic radionuclides and trapped noble gases are unusually low in both rocks, although Kalahari 008 contains slightly higher concentrations. A likely reason for this difference is that Kalahari 008 is a polymict breccia containing a briefly exposed regolith, while Kalahari 009 is a monomict brecciated rock that may never have been at the surface of the Moon.Altogether, the compositions of Kalahari 008 and 009 permit new insight into early lunar evolution, as both meteorites sample lunar reservoirs hitherto unsampled by spacecraft missions. The very low Th and REE content of Kalahari 009 as well as the depletion in Sm and the lack of a KREEP-like signature in Kalahari 008 point to a possible source far from the influence of the Procellarum-KREEP Terrane, possibly the lunar farside.     

Comparative petrology, geochemistry, and petrogenesis of evolved, low-Ti lunar mare basalt meteorites from the LaPaz Icefield, Antarctica

New data is presented for five evolved, low-Ti lunar mare basalt meteorites from the LaPaz Icefield, Antarctica, LAP 02205, LAP 02224, LAP 02226, LAP 02436, and LAP 03632. These basalts have nearly identical mineralogies, textures, and geochemical compositions, and are therefore considered to be paired. The LaPaz basalts contain olivine (Fo_64-2) and pyroxene (Fs₃₂Wo₈En₆₀ to Fs_84-86Wo₁₅En_2-0) crystals that record extreme chemical fractionation to Fe-enrichment at the rims, and evidence for silicate liquid immiscibility and incompatible element enrichment in the mesostasis. The basalts also contain FeNi metals with unusually high Co and Ni contents, similar to some Apollo 12 basalts, and a single-phase network of melt veins and fusion crusts. The fusion crust has similar chemical characteristics to the whole rock for the LaPaz basalts, whereas the melt veins represent localized melting of the basalt and have an endogenous origin. The crystallization conditions and evolved nature of the LaPaz basalts are consistent with fractionation of olivine and chromite from a parental liquid similar in composition to some olivine-phyric Apollo 12 and Apollo 15 basalts or lunar low-Ti pyroclastic glasses. However, the young reported ages for the LaPaz mare basalts (∼2.9 Ga) and their relative incompatible element enrichment compared to Apollo mare basalts and pyroclastic glasses indicate they cannot be directly related. Instead, the LaPaz mare basalts may represent fractionated melts from a magmatic system fed by similar degrees of partial melting of a mantle source similar to that of the low-Ti Apollo mare basalts or pyroclastic glasses, but which possessed greater incompatible element enrichment. Despite textural differences, the LaPaz basalts and mare basalt meteorite NWA 032 have similar ages and compositions and may originate from the same magmatic system on the Moon.     

Zircon and granite petrology

The typologic study of zircon populations from granitic rocks lead to the proposition of a genetic classification with three main divisions: (1) granites of crustal or mainly crustal origin [(sub) autochthonous and aluminous granites)]; (2) granites of crustal+mantle origin, hybrid granites (calc-alkaline and sub-alkaline series granites); (3) granites of mantle or mainly mantle origin (alkaline and tholeiitic series granites). In detail, there are many petrogenetic variants of each of the following granitic rocks: granodiorite, monzogranite and alkaline granite. The variations observed with zircon typology are accompanied petrographically by modifications of associations of other main and accessory minerals, and on the field by the presence or absence of basic microgranular xenoliths, associated microgranites, rhyolites or basic rocks. In the typologic diagram, some endogenous non granitic rocks (i.e. migmatites, tonalites, rhyolites ...) show a logical distribution with regard to different genetic stocks of granitic rocks.     

Comparative petrology of silicates in the Udei Station (IAB) and Miles (IIE) iron meteorites: Implications for the origin of silicate-bearing irons

The textures and mineral chemistries of silicate inclusions in the Udei Station (IAB) and Miles (fractionated IIE) iron meteorites were studied using optical and electron microscopy, SEM, EMPA, and LA-ICP-MS techniques to better understand the origin of silicate-bearing irons. Inclusions in Udei Station include near-chondritic, basaltic/gabbroic, feldspathic orthopyroxenitic, and harzburgitic lithologies. In Miles, most inclusions can be described as feldspathic pyroxenite or pyroxene-enriched basalt/gabbro. The trace-element compositions of both orthopyroxene and plagioclase grains are similar in different lithologies from Udei Station; whereas in different inclusions from Miles, the compositions of orthopyroxene grains are similar, while those of clinopyroxene, plagioclase, and especially Cl-apatite are variable. Orthopyroxene in Miles tends to be enriched in REE compared to that in Udei Station, but the reverse is true for plagioclase and clinopyroxene.The data can be explained by models involving partial melting of chondritic protoliths, silicate melt migration, and redox reactions between silicate and metal components to form phosphate. The extent of heating, melt migration, and phosphate formation were all greater in Miles. Silicates in Miles were formed from liquids produced by ∼30% partial melting of a chondritic precursor brought to a peak temperature of ∼1250 °C. This silicate melt crystallized in two stages. During Stage 1, crystallizing minerals (orthopyroxene, clinopyroxene, chromite, and olivine) were largely in equilibrium with an intercumulus melt that was evolving by igneous fractionation during slow cooling, with a residence time of ∼20 ka at ∼1150 °C. During Stage 2, following probable re-melting of feldspathic materials, and after the silicate “mush” was mixed with molten metal, plagioclase and phosphate fractionally crystallized together during more rapid cooling down to the solidus. In Udei Station, despite a lower peak temperature (<1180 °C) and degree of silicate partial melting (∼3-10%), silicate melt was able to efficiently separate from silicate solid to produce melt residues (harzburgite) and liquids or cumulates (basalt/gabbro, feldspathic orthopyroxenite) prior to final metal emplacement. Olivine was generally out of equilibrium with other minerals, but orthopyroxene and plagioclase largely equilibrated under magmatic conditions, and clinopyroxene in basalt/gabbro crystallized from a more evolved silicate melt.We suggest that a model involving major collisional disruption and mixing of partly molten, endogenically heated planetesimals can best explain the data for IAB and fractionated IIE silicate-bearing irons. The extent of endogenic heating was different (less for the IABs), and the amount of parent body disruption was different (scrambling with collisional unroofing for the IAB/IIICD/winonaite body, more complete destruction for the fractionated IIE body), but both bodies were partly molten and incompletely differentiated at the time of impact. We suggest that the post-impact secondary body for IAB/IIICD/winonaite meteorites was mineralogically zoned with Ni-poor metal in the center, and that the secondary body for fractionated IIE meteorites was a relatively small melt-rich body that had separated from olivine during collisional break-up.     

The Stannern trend eucrites: Contamination of main group eucritic magmas by crustal partial melts

We report on the petrology of a new eucrite belonging to the Stannern trend and discuss the origin of this trend. The eucrite Northwest Africa 4523 (NWA 4523) is an equilibrated eucrite consisting of dark clasts embedded in a fine-grained crystallized matrix. Two types of clasts have been observed: medium-grained ophitic/subophitic clasts, and very fine-grained clasts. Despite textural differences, the clasts display the same mineralogy, in particular the same kind of pyroxenes with pigeonitic cores containing sparse exsolution lamellae, and augitic rims, zoned plagioclases and the occurrence of K-feldspar. The major and trace element abundances of a large medium-grained clast are very similar to Stannern or Bouvante.The Stannern trend eucrites are characterized by high incompatible trace element abundances. Their trace element patterns normalized to a representative Main Group eucrite, exhibit significant Eu, Sr and Be negative anomalies. In this paper, we show that contamination of Main Group eucritic magmas by melts derived by partial melting of the asteroid’s crust can successfully explain both the high incompatible trace elements concentrations and the distinctive Eu, Sr, Be anomalies shown by the Stannern trend eucrites. This model is in agreement with the view that Stannern and some Main Group-Nuevo Laredo trend eucrites have been contemporaneously erupted, and with the probable assumption that Stannern trend eucrites formed rather late in the history of the 4-Vesta’s crust.     

Experimental petrology of alkalic lavas: constraints on cotectics of multiple saturation in natural basic liquids

Experimental study of natural alkalic lava compositions at low pressures (pO₂QFM) reveals that crystallization of primitive lavas often occurs in the sequence olivine, plagioclase, clinopyroxene, nepheline without obvious reaction relation. Pseudoternary liquidus projections of multiply saturated liquids coexisting with plagioclase (±olivine±clinopyroxene±nepheline) have been prepared to facilitate graphical analysis of the evolution of lava compositions during hypabyssal cooling. Use of (TiAl₂)(MgSi₂)_–1 and Fe³⁺ (Al)_–1 exchange components is a key aspect of the projection procedure which is succesful in reducing a wide range of compositions to a systematic graphical representation. These projections, and the experiments on which they are based, show that low pressure fractionation plays a significant role in the petrogenesis of many alkalic lava suites from both continental and oceanic settings. However, the role of polybaric fractionation is more evident in the major element chemistry of these lava suites than in many tholeiitic suites of comparable extent. For example, the lavas of Karisimbi, East Africa, show a range of compositions reflecting a polybaric petrogenesis from primitive picrites at 1360° C/18 kb and leading to advanced low pressure differentiates. Evolved leucite-bearing potassic members of this and other suites may be treated in a nepheline-diopside-kspar (+olivine+leucite) projection. Compositional curvature on the plagioclase+clinopyroxene+olivine+leucite cotectic offers a mechanism to explain resorption of plagioclase in alkalic groundmass assemblages and the incompatibility of albite and leucite. This projection is useful for evaluating the extent of assimilation of the alkalic portions of crustal granulites. Assimilation appears to have played some role in the advanced differentiates from Karisimbi.     

Index of Australian meteorites

A new compilation of Australian meteorite discoveries suggests that many meteorites remain to be discovered by field geologists and others, in outback areas of Australia.     

Fluorine in meteorites

Microanalysis using a resonant nuclear reaction was used to measure F concentrations in USGS standard rocks and 21 meteorites. The F appears to be a moderately depleted element, but there were significant variations within each sample. Measurements on separated metal phases suggest that about 20% of meteoritic F is in the metal or in a phase closely associated with it. Simultaneous measurements of F, Mg, Na, Al and Si in the non-magnetic fractions of meteorites suggest plagioclase as a F containing phase.     

Silicate mineralogy of martian meteorites

Basalts and basaltic cumulates from Mars (delivered to Earth as meteorites) carry a record of the history of that planet - from accretion to initial differentiation and subsequent volcanism, up to recent times. We provide new microprobe data for plagioclase, olivine, and pyroxene from 19 of the martian meteorites that are representative of the six types of martian rocks. We also provide a comprehensive WDS map dataset for each sample studied, collected at a common magnification for easy comparison of composition and texture. The silicate data shows that plagioclase from each of the rock types shares similar trends in Ca-Na-K, and that K₂O/Na₂O wt% of plagioclase multiplied by the Al content of the bulk rock can be used to determine whether a rock is “enriched” or “depleted” in nature. Olivine data show that meteorite Y 980459 is a primitive melt from the martian mantle as its olivine crystals are in equilibrium with its bulk rock composition; all other olivine-bearing Shergottites have been affected by fractional crystallization. Pyroxene quadrilateral compositions can be used to isolate the type of melt from which the grains crystallized, and minor element concentrations in pyroxene can lend insight into parent melt compositions.In a comparative planetary mineralogy context, plagioclase from Mars is richer in Na than terrestrial and lunar plagioclase. The two most important factors contributing to this are the low activity of Al in martian melts and the resulting delayed nucleation of plagioclase in the crystallizing rock. Olivine from martian rocks shows distinct trends in Ni-Co and Cr systematics compared with olivine from Earth and Moon. The trends are due to several factors including oxygen fugacity, melt compositions and melt structures, properties which show variability among the planets. Finally, Fe-Mn ratios in both olivine and pyroxene can be used as a fingerprint of planetary parentage, where minerals show distinct planetary trends that may have been set at the time of planetary accretion.Although the silicate mineralogical data alone cannot support one specific model of martian magmatism over another, the data does support the basic igneous reservoirs proposed for Mars, and may also be used to constrain some aspects of specific petrogenetic models. Examples include enriched and depleted reservoirs that can be identified by plagioclase K, Na and Al composition, multivalent element partitioning in olivine and pyroxene (V, Cr) elucidates oxygen fugacity conditions of the reservoirs, and minor element concentrations (i.e., Cr in pyx) show that proposed fractional crystallization models linking Y 980459 to QUE 94201 will not work.     

Fission-track ages of four meteorites

A method for selective annealing of cosmic-ray tracks has been developed, permitting determination of fission-track ages in the presence of a large background of cosmic-ray tracks. The mesosiderite Bondoc contains 41 fission tracks/cm², of which about 75% are due to neutron-induced fission of U²³⁵ during cosmic-ray exposure. Its net fission-track age is 140 ± 40 Myr, nearly identical to its cosmic-ray exposure age of 150 Myr. The mesosiderite Mincy has a fission-track age of 1500 ± 400 Myr.Nakhla (nakhlite) contains an excess of apparent fission tracks, which may be either genuine fission tracks from Pu²⁴⁴ or etch pits mimicking fission tracks in length, thermal stability, random orientation, and other characteristics. On the assumption that they are fission tracks, the Pu²⁴⁴/U²³⁸ ratio at the onset of track retention in Nakhla was (3.1 ± 1.3) × 10^?3, nearly an order of magnitude lower than the initial solar system ratio. This may reflect a chemical fractionation of Pu and U, or a late impact or magmatic event. Different minerals of the Washougal howardite have different Pu²⁴⁴/U²³⁸ ratios, from (24 ± 7) × 10^?3 to (2.3 ± 0.7) × 10^?3. This may imply a succession of impacts over a period of time. Additionally, Pu and U may have been chemically fractionated from each other in this meteorite.Shocked meteorites show no consistent pattern in the retentivity of fission tracks and of fissiogenic or radiogenic noble gases. Some meteorites, e.g. Bondoc, Serra de Magé, and Mincy, retain gases more completely than tracks; others, e.g. Nakhla and Allende, retain them less completely.Uranium was determined in feldspar and/or pyroxene from 19 Ca-rich achondrites and mesosiderites. For most, only upper limits of 0.01–0.03 ppb were obtained. Apparently the uranium in these meteorites resides almost exclusively in minor phases, as in terrestrial and lunar rocks.     

Impact features of enstatite-rich meteorites

Enstatite-rich meteorites include EH and EL chondrites, rare ungrouped enstatite chondrites, aubrites, a few metal-rich meteorites (possibly derived from the mantle of the aubrite parent body), various impact-melt breccias and impact-melt rocks, and a few samples that may be partial-melt residues ultimately derived from enstatite chondrites. Members of these sets of rocks exhibit a wide range of impact features including mineral-lattice deformation, whole-rock brecciation, petrofabrics, opaque veins, rare high-pressure phases, silicate darkening, silicate-rich melt veins and melt pockets, shock-produced diamonds, euhedral enstatite grains, nucleation of enstatite on relict grains and chondrules, low MnO in enstatite, high Mn in troilite and oldhamite, grains of keilite, abundant silica, euhedral graphite, euhedral sinoite, F-rich amphibole and mica, and impact-melt globules and spherules. No single meteorite possesses all of these features, although many possess several. Impacts can also cause bulk REE fractionations due to melting and loss of oldhamite (CaS) – the main REE carrier in enstatite meteorites. The Shallowater aubrite can be modeled as an impact-melt rock derived from a large cratering event on a porous enstatite chondritic asteroid; it may have been shock melted at depth, slowly cooled and then excavated and quenched. Mount Egerton may share a broadly similar shock and thermal history; it could be from the same parent body as Shallowater. Many aubrites contain large pyroxene grains that exhibit weak mosaic extinction, consistent with shock-stage S4; in contrast, small olivine grains in some of these same aubrites have sharp or undulose extinction, consistent with shock stage S1 to S2. Because elemental diffusion is much faster in olivine than pyroxene, it seems likely that these aubrites experienced mild post-shock annealing, perhaps due to relatively shallow burial after an energetic impact event. There are correlations among EH and EL chondrites between petrologic type and the degree of shock, consistent with the hypothesis that collisional heating is mainly responsible for enstatite-chondrite thermal metamorphism. Nevertheless, the apparent shock stages of EL6 and EH6 chondrites tend to be lower than EL3-5 and EH3-5 chondrites, suggesting that the type-6 enstatite chondrites (many of which possess impact-produced features) were shocked and annealed. The relatively young Ar–Ar ages of enstatite chondrites record heating events that occurred long after any ²⁶Al that may have been present initially had decayed away. Impacts remain the only plausible heat source at these late dates. Some enstatite meteorites accreted to other celestial bodies: Hadley Rille (EH) was partly melted when it struck the Moon; Galim (b), also an EH chondrite, was shocked and partly oxidized when it accreted to the LL parent asteroid. EH, EL and aubrite-like clasts also occur in the polymict breccias Kaidun (a carbonaceous chondrite) and Almahata Sitta (an anomalous ureilite). The EH and EL clasts in Kaidun appear unshocked; some clasts in Almahata Sitta may have been extensively shocked on their parent bodies prior to being incorporated into the Almahata Sitta host.