Accretion, dispersal, and reaccumulation of the Bishunpur (LL3.1) brecciated chondrite: Evidence from troilite-silicate-metal inclusions and chondrule rims

A set of troilite-silicate-metal (TSM) inclusions and chondrule rims in the Bishunpur (LL3.1) chondrite provide information regarding impact brecciation of small bodies in the early solar system. The TSM inclusions and chondrule rims consist of numerous angular to subrounded silicate grains that are individually enclosed by fine networks of troilite. FeNi metal also occurs in the troilite matrix. The silicates include olivine (Fo_55-98), low-Ca pyroxene (En_78-98), and high-Ca pyroxene (En_48-68Wo_11-32). Al- and Si-rich glass coexists with the silicates. Relatively coarse silicate grains are apparently fragments of chondrules typical of petrologic type-3 chondrites. Troilite fills all available cracks and pores in the silicate grains. Some of the TSM inclusions and rims are themselves surrounded by fine-grained silicate-rich rims (FGR).The TSM inclusions and rims texturally resemble the troilite-rich regions in the Smyer H-chondrite breccia. They probably formed by shock-induced mobilization of troilite during an impact event on a primitive asteroidal body. Because silicates in the TSM inclusions and rims have highly unequilibrated compositions, their precursor was presumably type-3 chondritic material like Bishunpur itself. The TSM inclusions and the chondrules with the TSM rims were fragmented and dispersed after the impact-induced compaction, then reaccreted onto the Bishunpur parent body. FGR probably formed around the TSM inclusions and rims, as well as around some chondrules, during the reaccumulation process. Components of most type-2 and 3 chondrites probably experienced similar processing, i.e., dispersal of unconsolidated materials and subsequent reaccumulation.     

Recycling of Organic Matter in the Sediments of Santa Monica Basin,California Borderland

Geochemical and isotopic data for the uppermost 1.2 m of the sediments of the central Santa Monica Basin plain were examined to better understand organic matter deposition and recycling at this site. Isotopic signatures (Δ¹⁴C and δ¹³C) of methane (CH₄) and dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) indicate the occurrence of anaerobic oxidation of CH₄ that is fueled by CH₄ supplied from a relict reservoir that is decoupled from local organic carbon (C_org) degradation and methanogenesis. This finding was corroborated by a flux budget of pore-water solutes across the basal horizon of the profile. Together these results provide a plausible explanation for the anomalously low ratio between alkalinity production and sulfate consumption reported for these sediments over two decades ago. Shifts in Δ¹⁴C and δ¹³C signatures of C_org have previously been reported across the 20-cm depth horizon for this site and attributed to a transition from oxic to anoxic bottom water that occurred ~350 years BP. However, we show that this horizon also coincides with a boundary between the base of a hemipelagic mud section and the top of a turbidite interval, complicating the interpretation of organic geochemical data across this boundary. Radiocarbon signatures of DIC diffusing upward into surface sediments indicate that remineralization at depth is supported by relatively ¹⁴C-enriched C_org within the sedimentary matrix. While the exact nature of this C_org is unclear, possible sources are hemipelagic mud sections that were buried rapidly under thick turbidites, and ¹⁴C-rich moieties dispersed within C_org-poor turbidite sections.     

Half-life of 92Nb

The long-lived nuclide ⁹²Nb together with ⁹¹Nb and ⁹⁴Nb were produced from Mo by neutron irradiation. The activities of the nuclides were determined by γ spectroscopy and the atomic abundances were determined by mass spectrometry. Intercomparison of ⁹²Nb and ⁹⁴Nb activities and abundances yielded a value for half-life $\text{(}{}^{92}\text{Nb) = (3.3 ± 0.5) × 10}{}^7$ yr based on a value for half-life $\text{(}{}^{94}\text{Nb) = 2.0 × 10}{}^4$ yr. The same value was obtained within errors from absolute counting data and dilution analysis.     

The gravitational instability in the dust layer of a protoplanetary disk:: axisymmetric solutions for nonuniform dust density distributions in the direction vertical to the midplane

The gravitational instability in the dust layer of a protoplanetary disk with nonuniform dust density distributions in the direction vertical to the midplane is investigated. The linear analysis of the gravitational instability is performed. The following assumptions are used: (1) One fluid model is adopted, that is, difference of velocities between dust and gas are neglected. (2) The gas is incompressible. (3) Models are axisymmetric with respect to the rotation axis of the disk. Numerical results show that the critical density at the midplane is higher than the one for the uniform dust density distribution by Sekiya (1983, Prog. Theor. Phys. 69, 1116-1130). For the Gaussian dust density distribution, the critical density is 1.3 times higher, although we do not consider this dust density distribution to be realistic because of the shear instability in the dust layer. For the dust density distribution with a constant Richardson number, which is considered to be realized due to the shear instability, the critical density is 2.85 times higher and is independent of the value of the Richardson number. Further, if a constant Richardson number could decrease to the order of 0.001, the gravitational instability would be realized even for the dust to gas surface density ratio with the solar abundance. Our results give a new restriction on planetesimal formation by the gravitational instability.     

Gas flow in the solar nebula leading to the formation of Jupiter

Three-dimensional gas flow in the solar nebula, which is subject to the gravity of the Sun and proto-Jupiter, is numerically calculated by using a three-dimensional hydrodynamic code - i.e., the socalled smoothed-particle method. The flow is circulating around the Sun as well as falling into a potential well of proto-Jupiter. The results for various masses of proto-Jupiter show that (1) the e-folding growth time of proto-Jupiter by accretion of the nebular gas is as short as about 300 years in stages where the mass of proto-Jupiter is 0.2 ~ 0.5 times the present Jovian mass, and that (2) proto-Jupiter begins to push away the nebular gas from the orbit of proto-Jupiter and form a gap around the orbit, when its mass is about 0.7 times the present Jovian mass. It is possible that this pushing-away process determined the present Jovian mass.     

Lunar meteorite Queen Alexandra Range 94281: Glass compositions and other evidence for launch pairing with Yamato 793274

Abstract— Lunar meteorite Queen Alexandra Range 94281 is remarkably similar to Yamato 793274. Pairing in the conventional Earth-entry sense is difficult to reconcile with the 2500 km separation between the find locations for these two samples. Nonetheless, both of these regolith breccias are dominated by very-low-Ti (VLT) mare basalt, the pyroxenes of which feature exsolution lamellae on a remarkably coarse scale (typical lamella width = 0.5–1 μm) by mare standards. The pyroxenes also show similar compositional variations (e.g., Fe# vs. Ti# trends, which confirm parentage from VLT mare basalt). Plots using Al₂O₃ or FeO as a tracer of the highland component indicate indistinguishable internal mare-highland geochemical mixing trends. The same two distinctive glass types dominate the mare glass populations of both breccias. Glass type YQ1 features 0.37–0.63 wt% TiO₂, 10–17 wt% MgO, and 9–11 wt% Al₂O₃. Glass type YQ2 features higher TiO₂ (0.99–1.22 wt%), which is inversely correlated with MgO (12.6–13.8 wt%), and nearly constant (8.8 wt%) Al₂O₃. All of these similarities suggest that Y-793274 and QUE 94281 are a launch pair, which we designate YQ. Most of these similarities also extend to another mare-breccia meteorite, Elephant Moraine 87521. However, the EET 87521 mare basalt is unusually V-poor (～88 μg/g), whereas the YQ mare component contains ～166 μg/g. Queen Alexandra Range 94281 features a variety of textural domains. Discrete patches of dark matrix material appear to represent clods of mature regolith that have been mixed with a coarser, relatively immature material. Interior to a frothy fusion crust are areas of massive glass that probably formed as a splash coating on QUE 94281 when it was still on the Moon. The coarse YQ and EET 87521 pyroxene exsolution features imply relatively slow cooling in either a very shallow sill or an unusually thick (ponded) lava and/or later annealing within a cryptomare. Mare pyroclastic glasses, including the two YQ varieties, are systematically MgO-rich compared to crystalline mare basalts. This disparity may be a consequence of limited survival of graphite—the main fuel for explosive volcanism—during formation of the mare source regions as magma ocean cumulates. Graphite (2.2 g/cm³) survived preferentially in regions that avoided extensive early melting and thus remained MgO-rich. An apparent bimodality in the TiO₂ contents of mare volcanics, especially the pyroclastic glasses, also seems a plausible consequence of petrogenesis by remelting of magma ocean cumulates. Cumulates deposited after the magma ocean evolved to ilmenite saturation had vastly higher TiO₂ contents than cumulates deposited shortly before. The YQ regolith's subequal proportions of mare and highland matter are consistent with derivation from a terrain close to a mare-highland boundary. However, a similar mixture might also develop through vertical mixing in a cryptomare or a region of thin mare coverage. Thus, unfortunately, the YQ bulk composition is not a very useful clue to the identity of the source crater.     

Organohalogen compounds in deep-sea fishes from the western North Pacific, off-Tohoku, Japan: Contamination status and bioaccumulation profiles

Twelve species of deep-sea fishes collected in 2005 from the western North Pacific, off-Tohoku, Japan were analyzed for organohalogen compounds. Among the compounds analyzed, concentrations of DDTs and PCBs (up to 23,000 and 12,400 ng/g lipid wt, respectively) were the highest. The present study is the foremost to report the occurrence of brominated flame retardants such as PBDEs and HBCDs in deep-sea organisms from the North Pacific region. Significant positive correlations found between δ¹⁵N (‰) and PCBs, DDTs and PBDEs suggest the high biomagnification potential of these contaminants in food web. The large variation in δ¹³C (‰) values observed between the species indicate multiple sources of carbon in the food web and specific accumulation of hydrophobic organohalogen compounds in benthic dwelling carnivore species like snubnosed eel. The results obtained in this study highlight the usefulness of deep-sea fishes as sentinel species to monitor the deep-sea environment.     

Holocene paleolimnological changes in Lake Skallen Oike in the Syowa Station area of Antarctica inferred from organic components in a sediment core (Sk4C-02)

Antarctic climate changes influence environmental changes at both regional and local scales. Here we report Holocene paleolimnological changes in lake sediment core Sk4C-02 (length 378.0 cm) from Lake Skallen Oike in the Soya Kaigan region of East Antarctica inferred from analyses of sedimentary facies, a range of organic components, isotope ratios of organic carbon and nitrogen, and carbon-14 dating by Tandetron accelerator mass spectrometry. The sediment core was composed of clayish mud (378.0–152.5 cm) overlain by organic sediments (152.5 cm-surface). The age of the surface and the core bottom were 150 (AD1950-1640) and ca. 7,030 ± 73 calibrated years before present (cal BP), respectively, and the mean sedimentation rate was estimated to be 0.55 mm/year. Multi-proxy analyses revealed that the principal environmental change in the core is a transition from marine to lacustrine environments which occurred at a depth of 152.5 cm (ca. 3,590 cal BP). This was caused by relative sea level change brought about by ongoing retreat of glaciers during the mid-Holocene warming of Antarctica, and ongoing isostatic uplift which outpaced changes in global (eustatic) sea level. The mean isostatic uplift rate was calculated to be 2.8 mm/year. The coastal marine period (378.0–152.5 cm, ca. 7,030–3,590 cal BP) was characterized by low biological production with the predominance of diatoms. During the transition period from marine to freshwater conditions (152.5-approximately 135 cm, ca. 3,590–3,290 cal BP) the lake was stratified with marine water overlain by freshwater, with a chemocline and an anoxic (sulfidic) layer in the bottom of the photic zone. Green sulfur bacteria and Cryptophyta were the major photosynthetic organisms. The Cryptophyta appeared to be tolerant of the moderate salinity and stratified water conditions. The lacustrine period (approximately 135 cm-surface, ca. 3,290 cal BP-present) was characterized by high biological production by green algae (e.g. Comarium clepsydra and Oedegonium spp.) with some contributions from cyanobacteria and diatoms. Biological production during this period was 8.7 times higher than during the coastal marine period.     

Carbon and oxygen isotope chemostratigraphies of the Yangtze platform,South China: Decoding temperature and environmental changes through the Ediacaran

Multicellular animals first appeared on the earth during the Ediacaran period. However, the relationship between the abrupt biological evolution and environmental changes is still ambiguous. In order to examine seawater temperature and the carbon cycle through the Ediacaran, we analyzed the carbon and oxygen isotope compositions of carbonate rocks from drill cores from the Three Gorges area, South China. Importantly, the core samples include the Nantuo tillite, corresponding to the Marinoan glaciation, through the Doushantuo to the lower Dengying Fms. in ascending order.The δ¹³C profile displays five positive and five negative anomalies (PI-1 to 5 and NI-1 to 5), and the oxygen isotopes display very high absolute values around 0‰ with the highest at + 1.83‰. The combined δ¹⁸O and δ¹³C chemostratigraphies display both positive and negative correlations between the δ¹⁸O and δ¹³C values. The occurrence of the negative correlations supports the preservation of primary δ¹⁸O and δ¹³C values.The sample NI-4 has a negative correlation of the δ¹⁸O and δ¹³C excursions. The correlation supports a primary signature for both δ¹⁸O and δ¹³C variations. The positive δ¹⁸O excursion, accompanied by evidence of a eustatic sea-level fall, provides direct evidence for global cooling in the mid-Ediacaran; the 580 Ma Gaskiers Glaciation is a potential candidate for this global cooling event. The negative δ¹³C excursion was possibly caused by an increase in remineralization of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) due to enhanced continental weathering during the glaciation.Sample NI-5 is characterized by very low δ¹³C values, down to ? 10‰, corresponding to the Shuram-Wonoka-Pertatataka Excursion. The cause of the δ¹³C negative excursion is still not clear. However, a ubiquitous occurrence in excursions worldwide, and the lower δ¹³C values in deeper sections favor the enhancement of remineralization and respiration rather than secondary alteration, a restricted sea environment and lithification in coastal areas.