A Study on the Recovery and Classification of Meteorites from the Mt. Grove Region of Antarctica

The Antarctic Continent has become the largest natural preservatory of meteorites in the world because of its unique geographical position and climatic conditions. Mt. Grove is located in the inland area of the Antarctic Continent where the conditions are favorable for the preservation of meteorites. During China's 15th, 16th and 19th Antarctic Scientific Explorations a large number of meteorites were recovered in the Mt. Grove region. Especially during the 19th Exploration in 2002/03 a total of 4448 meteorites were recovered, which at one stroke put China among countries that have recovered most numbers of meteorites. Here, we report mainly the results of microscope and electron microprobe studies of 28 meteorites recovered during the 16th Exploration. The meteorites are chemically classified based on their mean Fa contents of olivine, mean Fs contents of low-Ca pyroxene and abundances of Fe-Ni metal. We also give a brief account of the meteorite recovery during the three Explorations and of some preli     

A Study on the Recovery and Classification of Meteorites from the Mr. Grove Region of Antarctica

The Antarctic Continent has become the largest natural preservatory of meteorites in the world because of its unique geographical position and climatic conditions. Mt. Grove is located in the inland area of the Antarctic Continent where the conditions are favorable for the preservation of meteorites. During China‘s 15th, 16th and 19th Antarctic Scientific Explorations a large number of meteorites were recovered in the Mt. Grove region. Especially during the 19th Exploration in 2002/03 a total of 4448 meteorites were recovered, which at one stroke put China among countries that have recovered most numbers of meteorites. Here, we report mainly the results of microscope and electron microprobe studies of 28 meteorites recovered during the 16th Exploration. The meteorites are chemically classified based on their mean Fa contents of olivine, mean Fs contents of low-Ca pyroxene and abundances of Fe-Ni metal. We also give a brief account of the meteorite recovery during the three Explorations and of some preliminary classification results of the Antarctic meteorites.     

Reflectance Spectral Characteristics of Lunar Surface Materials

Based on a comprehensive analysis of the mineral composition of major lunar rocks (highland anorthosite, lunar mare basalt and KREEP rock), we investigate the reflectance spectral characteristics of the lunar rock-forming minerals, including feldspar, pyroxene and olivine. The affecting factors, the variation of the intensity of solar radiation with wavelength and the reflectance spectra of the lunar rocks are studied. We also calculate the reflectivity of lunar mare basalt and highland anorthosite at 300 nm, 415 nm, 750 nm, 900 nm, 950 nm and 1000 nm. It is considered that the difference in composition between lunar mare basalt and highland anorthosite is so large that separate analyses are needed in the study of the reflectivity of lunar surface materials in the two regions covered by mare basalt and highland anorthosite, and especially in the region with high Th contents, which may be the KREEP-distributed region.