Analytical protocols for Phobos regolith samples returned by the Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) mission.

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) will launch a spacecraft in 2024 for a sample return mission from Phobos (Martian Moons eXploration: MMX). Touchdown operations are planned to be performed twice at different landing sites on the Phobos surface to collect > 10 g of the Phobos surface materials with coring and pneumatic sampling systems on board. The Sample Analysis Working Team (SAWT) of MMX is now designing analytical protocols of the returned Phobos samples to shed light on the origin of the Martian moons as well as the evolution of the Mars-moon system. Observations of petrology and mineralogy, and measurements of bulk chemical compositions and stable isotopic ratios of, e.g., O, Cr, Ti, and Zn can provide crucial information about the origin of Phobos. If Phobos is a captured asteroid composed of primitive chondritic materials, as inferred from its reflectance spectra, geochemical data including the nature of organic matter as well as bulk H and N isotopic compositions characterize the volatile materials in the samples and constrain the type of the captured asteroid. Cosmogenic and solar wind components, most pronounced in noble gas isotopic compositions, can reveal surface processes on Phobos. Long- and short-lived radionuclide chronometry such as 53Mn-53Cr and 87Rb-87Sr systematics can date pivotal events like impacts, thermal metamorphism, and aqueous alteration on Phobos. It should be noted that the Phobos regolith is expected to contain a small amount of materials delivered from Mars, which may be physically and chemically different from any Martian meteorites in our collection and thus are particularly precious. The analysis plan will be designed to detect such Martian materials, if any, from the returned samples dominated by the endogenous Phobos materials in curation procedures at JAXA before they are processed for further analyses.

Oxygen isotopes of anhydrous primary minerals show kinship between asteroid Ryugu and comet 81P/Wild2.

The extraterrestrial materials returned from asteroid (162173) Ryugu consist predominantly of low-temperature aqueously formed secondary minerals and are chemically and mineralogically similar to CI (Ivuna-type) carbonaceous chondrites. Here, we show that high-temperature anhydrous primary minerals in Ryugu and CI chondrites exhibit a bimodal distribution of oxygen isotopic compositions: 16O-rich (associated with refractory inclusions) and 16O-poor (associated with chondrules). Both the 16O-rich and 16O-poor minerals probably formed in the inner solar protoplanetary disk and were subsequently transported outward. The abundance ratios of the 16O-rich to 16O-poor minerals in Ryugu and CI chondrites are higher than in other carbonaceous chondrite groups but are similar to that of comet 81P/Wild2, suggesting that Ryugu and CI chondrites accreted in the outer Solar System closer to the accretion region of comets.

The Winchcombe meteorite, a unique and pristine witness from the outer solar system.

Direct links between carbonaceous chondrites and their parent bodies in the solar system are rare. The Winchcombe meteorite is the most accurately recorded carbonaceous chondrite fall. Its pre-atmospheric orbit and cosmic-ray exposure age confirm that it arrived on Earth shortly after ejection from a primitive asteroid. Recovered only hours after falling, the composition of the Winchcombe meteorite is largely unmodified by the terrestrial environment. It contains abundant hydrated silicates formed during fluid-rock reactions, and carbon- and nitrogen-bearing organic matter including soluble protein amino acids. The near-pristine hydrogen isotopic composition of the Winchcombe meteorite is comparable to the terrestrial hydrosphere, providing further evidence that volatile-rich carbonaceous asteroids played an important role in the origin of Earth's water.

The Fe/S ratio of pyrrhotite group sulfides in chondrites: An indicator of oxidation and implications for return samples from asteroids Ryugu and Bennu.

Determining compositional trends among individual minerals is key to understanding the thermodynamic conditions under which they formed and altered, and is also essential to maximizing the scientific value of small extraterrestrial samples, including returned samples and meteorites. Here we report the chemical compositions of Fe-sulfides, focusing on the pyrrhotite-group sulfides, which are ubiquitous in chondrites and are sensitive indicators of formation and alteration conditions in the protoplanetary disk and in small Solar System bodies. Our data show that while there are trends with the at.% Fe/S ratio of pyrrhotite with thermal and aqueous alteration in some meteorite groups, there is a universal trend between the Fe/S ratio and degree of oxidation. Relatively reducing conditions led to the formation of troilite during: (1) chondrule formation in the protoplanetary disk (i.e., pristine chondrites) and (2) parent body thermal alteration (i.e., LL4 to LL6, CR1, CM, and CY chondrites). Oxidizing and sulfidizing conditions led to the formation of Fe-depleted pyrrhotite with low Fe/S ratios during: (1) aqueous alteration (i.e., CM and CI chondrites), and (2) thermal alteration (i.e., CK and R chondrites). The presence of troilite in highly aqueously altered carbonaceous chondrites (e.g., CY, CR1, and some CM chondrites) indicates they were heated after aqueous alteration. The presence of troilite, Fe-depleted pyrrhotite, or pyrite in a chondrite can provide an estimate of the oxygen and sulfur fugacities at which it was formed or altered. The data reported here can be used to estimate the oxygen fugacity of formation and potentially the aqueous and/or thermal histories of sulfides in extraterrestrial samples, including those returned by the Hayabusa2 mission and due to be returned by the OSIRIS-REx mission in the near future.

Primordial formation of major silicates in a protoplanetary disc with homogeneous 26Al/27Al.

Understanding the spatial variability of initial 26Al/27Al in the solar system, i.e., (26Al/27Al)0, is of prime importance to meteorite chronology, planetary heat production, and protoplanetary disc mixing dynamics. The (26Al/27Al)0 of calcium-aluminum-rich inclusions (CAIs) in primitive meteorites (~5 × 10-5) is frequently assumed to reflect the (26Al/27Al)0 of the entire protoplanetary disc, and predicts its initial 26Mg/24Mg to be ~35 parts per million (ppm) less radiogenic than modern Earth (i.e., Δ'26Mg0 = -35 ppm). Others argue for spatially heterogeneous (26Al/27Al)0, where the source reservoirs of most primitive meteorite components have lower (26Al/27Al)0 at ~2.7 × 10-5 and Δ'26Mg0 of -16 ppm. We measured the magnesium isotope compositions of primitive meteoritic olivine, which originated outside of the CAI-forming reservoir(s), and report five grains whose Δ'26Mg0 are within uncertainty of -35 ppm. Our data thus affirm a model of a largely homogeneous protoplanetary disc with (26Al/27Al)0 of ~5 × 10-5, supporting the accuracy of the 26Al→26Mg chronometer.

The oldest magnetic record in our solar system identified using nanometric imaging and numerical modeling.

Recordings of magnetic fields, thought to be crucial to our solar system's rapid accretion, are potentially retained in unaltered nanometric low-Ni kamacite (~ metallic Fe) grains encased within dusty olivine crystals, found in the chondrules of unequilibrated chondrites. However, most of these kamacite grains are magnetically non-uniform, so their ability to retain four-billion-year-old magnetic recordings cannot be estimated by previous theories, which assume only uniform magnetization. Here, we demonstrate that non-uniformly magnetized nanometric kamacite grains are stable over solar system timescales and likely the primary carrier of remanence in dusty olivine. By performing in-situ temperature-dependent nanometric magnetic measurements using off-axis electron holography, we demonstrate the thermal stability of multi-vortex kamacite grains from the chondritic Bishunpur meteorite. Combined with numerical micromagnetic modeling, we determine the stability of the magnetization of these grains. Our study shows that dusty olivine kamacite grains are capable of retaining magnetic recordings from the accreting solar system.

An asteroidal origin for water in the Moon.

The Apollo-derived tenet of an anhydrous Moon has been contested following measurement of water in several lunar samples that require water to be present in the lunar interior. However, significant uncertainties exist regarding the flux, sources and timing of water delivery to the Moon. Here we address those fundamental issues by constraining the mass of water accreted to the Moon and modelling the relative proportions of asteroidal and cometary sources for water that are consistent with measured isotopic compositions of lunar samples. We determine that a combination of carbonaceous chondrite-type materials were responsible for the majority of water (and nitrogen) delivered to the Earth-Moon system. Crucially, we conclude that comets containing water enriched in deuterium contributed significantly <20% of the water in the Moon. Therefore, our work places important constraints on the types of objects impacting the Moon ∼4.5-4.3 billion years ago and on the origin of water in the inner Solar System.

Heterogeneity in lunar anorthosite meteorites: implications for the lunar magma ocean model.

The lunar magma ocean model is a well-established theory of the early evolution of the Moon. By this model, the Moon was initially largely molten and the anorthositic crust that now covers much of the lunar surface directly crystallized from this enormous magma source. We are undertaking a study of the geochemical characteristics of anorthosites from lunar meteorites to test this model. Rare earth and other element abundances have been measured in situ in relict anorthosite clasts from two feldspathic lunar meteorites: Dhofar 908 and Dhofar 081. The rare earth elements were present in abundances of approximately 0.1 to approximately 10× chondritic (CI) abundance. Every plagioclase exhibited a positive Eu-anomaly, with Eu abundances of up to approximately 20×CI. Calculations of the melt in equilibrium with anorthite show that it apparently crystallized from a magma that was unfractionated with respect to rare earth elements and ranged in abundance from 8 to 80×CI. Comparisons of our data with other lunar meteorites and Apollo samples suggest that there is notable heterogeneity in the trace element abundances of lunar anorthosites, suggesting these samples did not all crystallize from a common magma source. Compositional and isotopic data from other authors also suggest that lunar anorthosites are chemically heterogeneous and have a wide range of ages. These observations may support other models of crust formation on the Moon or suggest that there are complexities in the lunar magma ocean scenario to allow for multiple generations of anorthosite formation.

Comment on "ancient asteroids enriched in refractory inclusions".

Sunshine et al. (Reports, 25 April 2008, p. 514) reported that certain asteroids contain 30 +/- 10 volume percent calcium- and aluminum-rich inclusions (CAIs). We contend that the amount of CAIs in CV chondrites is two to three times as low as the 10 volume percent assumed by the authors; thus, we question whether the CAI-rich bodies they studied are indeed older than known asteroids or formed before the injection of (26)Al into the solar nebula.

Supra-canonical 26Al/27Al and the residence time of CAIs in the solar protoplanetary disk.

The canonical initial 26Al/27Al ratio of 4.5 x 10(-5) has been a fiducial marker for the beginning of the solar system. Laser ablation and whole-rock multiple-collector inductively coupled plasma-source mass spectrometry magnesium isotope analyses of calcium- and aluminum-rich inclusions (CAIs) from CV3 meteorites demonstrate that some CAIs had initial 26Al/27Al values at least 25% greater than canonical and that the canonical initial 26Al/27Al cannot mark the beginning of solar system formation. Using rates of Mg diffusion in minerals, we find that the canonical initial 26Al/27Al is instead the culmination of thousands of brief high-temperature events incurred by CAIs during a 10(5)-year residence time in the solar protoplanetary disk.