Consistent grain size distribution of pedogenic maghemite of surface soils and Miocene loessic soils on the Chinese Loess Plateau

There is agreement that ultrafine maghemite grains (<100 nm) are responsible for the magnetic enhancement of Chinese loess. Recent studies show that grain size distribution of ultrafine pedogenic maghemite grains within the aeolian sequences on the central Chinese Loess Plateau deposited in the last 8 Ma is consistent. However, whether the observed grain size distribution of ultrafine pedogenic maghemite grains can be observed in the western Chinese Loess Plateau and modern soils is not entirely clear. Here we find that young surface soil samples across the Chinese Loess Plateau and early Neogene loessic soils from the western Chinese Loess Plateau also show consistent grain size distribution with that of ultrafine pedogenic maghemite grains on the central Chinese Loess Plateau. The fact that young surface soil samples show apparent magnetic enhancement suggests that the ultrafine pedogenic maghemite grains derive from oxidation of ultrafine magnetite grains. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

X‐ray computed tomography: Morphological and porosity characterization of giant Antarctic micrometeorites

Giant micrometeorites (MMs; 400–2000 µm) are exceedingly rare and scientifically valuable. Three‐dimensional nondestructive characterization by X‐ray computed tomography (X‐CT) provides information on the petrography and thus petrogenesis of MMs and serves as a guide to maximize subsequent multi‐analytical studies on such precious planetary materials. Here, we discuss the results obtained by X‐CT on 22 giant MMs and the classification based on their 3‐D density contrast images. Scoriaceous and unmelted MMs have distinct porosity ranges (10–40 vol% versus 0–25 vol%, respectively). We observe a porosity variation inside scoriaceous MMs, which allows their atmospheric entry flight history to be resolved. For the first time, spinning entry is explicitly demonstrated for four partially melted MMs. Furthermore, we are able to resolve the thermal gradient in a single particle, based on porosity variation (seen as a progressive increase in pore abundance and size with higher peak temperatures). Moreover, we explore parent body alteration through the 3‐D analysis of pores distribution, showing that shock fabrics are either absent or weakly developed in our data set. Finally, owing to the detection of pseudomorphic chondrules, we estimate that the intensively aqueously altered C1 or CI‐like material could represent 18% of the MM flux at this size fraction (400–1000 µm).     

Type 1 aqueous alteration in CM carbonaceous chondrites: Implications for the evolution of water‐rich asteroids

The CM carbonaceous chondrite meteorites experienced aqueous alteration in the early solar system. They range from mildly altered type 2 to almost completely hydrated type 1 chondrites, and offer a record of geochemical conditions on water‐rich asteroids. We show that CM1 chondrites contain abundant (84–91 vol%) phyllosilicate, plus olivine (4–8 vol%), magnetite (2–3 vol%), Fe‐sulfide (<5 vol%), and calcite (<2 vol%). The CM1/2 chondrites contain phyllosilicate (71–88 vol%), olivine (4–20 vol%), enstatite (2–6 vol%), magnetite (2–3 vol%), Fe‐sulfides (1–2 vol%), and calcite (~1 vol%). As aqueous alteration progressed, the abundance of Mg‐serpentine and magnetite in the CM chondrites increased. In contrast, calcite abundances in the CM1/2 and CM1 chondrites are often depleted relative to the CM2s. The modal data support the model, whereby metal and Fe‐rich matrix were the first components to be altered on the CM parent body(ies), before further hydration attacked the coarser Mg‐rich silicates found in chondrules and fragments. Based on the absence of tochilinite, we suggest that CM1 chondrites experienced increased alteration due to elevated temperatures (>120 °C), although higher water/rock ratios may also have played a role. The modal data provide constraints for interpreting the composition of asteroids and the mineralogy of samples returned from these bodies. We predict that “CM1‐like” asteroids, as has been proposed for Bennu—target for the OSIRIS‐REx mission—will have a high abundance of Mg‐rich phyllosilicates and Fe‐oxides, but be depleted in calcite.     

The Avalon Zone: A Pan-African terrane in the Appalachian Orogen of Canada

The Precambrian sequences of the Avalon Zone in Canada (southeastern margin of the Appalachian Orogen) are interpreted as a Pan-African orogenic belt incorporated into the Appalachian Orogen during Palaeozoic times as its southeastern margin. The Precambrian evolution of the Avalon Zone was genetically unrelated to subsequent Palaeozoic evolution. The Avalon Zone shows marked similarities in age, tectonic history, and facies development to the Pan-African belts adjacent to the West African Craton. Precambrian evolution of the zone began with circa 800 Ma rifting of a sialic gneissic basement and deposition of a Middle Proterozoic(?) carbonate-clastic cover sequence. Early crustal rifting was associated with localized partial melting and metamorphism. Limited crustal separation led to the restricted development of circa 760 Ma oceanic volcanics. Continued rifting and subsequent closure of these narrow ocean basins led to the eruption of widespread subaerial volcanic suites, block faulting, granite plutonism, and local, late Proterozoic sedimentary basin formation. Precambrian evolution of the zone terminated with the Avalonian Orogeny (circa 650-600 Ma), a deformational event, the affects of which are most evident locally along the northwestern margin of the zone. The controlling features of the Proterozoic evolution of the Avalon Zone are a series of linear intracratonic troughs and small ocean basins that formed during thinning and separation of the crust by ductile spreading, rupture, and delamination (cf. Martin and Porada 1977). The variation in degree of crustal separation led to subsequent variation in orogenesis during late Proterozoic compression. The zone marks the original westward limit of Pan-African activity and displays no apparent genetic link with the Appalachian Orogen in Canada until Devonian times.     

Ceres internal structure from geophysical constraints

Thermal evolution modeling has yielded a variety of interior structures for Ceres, ranging from a modestly differentiated interior to more advanced evolution with a dry silicate core, a hydrated silicate mantle, and a volatile‐rich crust. Here we compute the mass and hydrostatic flattening from more than one hundred billion three‐layer density models for Ceres and describe the characteristics of the population of density structures that are consistent with the Dawn observations. We show that the mass and hydrostatic flattening constraints from Ceres indicate the presence of a high‐density core with greater than a 1σ probability, but provide little constraint on the density, allowing for core compositions that range from hydrous and/or anhydrous silicates to a mixture of metal and silicates. The crustal densities are consistent with surface observations of salts, water ice, carbonates, and ammoniated clays, which indicate hydrothermal alteration, partial fractionation, and the possible settling of heavy sulfide and metallic particles, which provide a potential process for increasing mass with depth.