4.7 Article

Water in evolved lunar rocks: Evidence for multiple reservoirs

Journal

GEOCHIMICA ET COSMOCHIMICA ACTA
Volume 188, Issue -, Pages 244-260

Publisher

PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.gca.2016.05.030

Keywords

Moon; Lunar volatiles; Apatite; Water; H isotopes

Funding

  1. National Aeronautics and Space Administration through the NASA Astrobiology Institute through the Office of Space Science [NNA09DA77A]
  2. NASA Lunar Advanced Science and Exploration Research [NNX11AE85G]
  3. Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute (through the Center for Lunar Science and Exploration) [NNA14AB07A]
  4. Bullard Foundation
  5. STFC [ST/I001298/1, ST/L000776/1]
  6. STFC [ST/I001298/1, ST/L000776/1] Funding Source: UKRI
  7. Science and Technology Facilities Council [ST/I001298/1, ST/L000776/1] Funding Source: researchfish
  8. NASA [NNX11AE85G, 147706] Funding Source: Federal RePORTER

Ask authors/readers for more resources

We have measured the abundance and isotopic composition of water in apatites from several lunar rocks representing Potassium (K), Rare Earth Elements (REE), and Phosphorus (P) - KREEP - rich lithologies, including felsites, quartz monzodiorites (QMDs), a troctolite, and an alkali anorthosite. The H-isotope data from apatite provide evidence for multiple reservoirs in the lunar interior. Apatite measurements from some KREEP-rich intrusive rocks display moderately elevated delta D signatures, while other samples show delta D signatures similar to the range known for the terrestrial upper mantle. Apatite grains in Apollo 15 quartz monzodiorites have the lowest delta D values measured from the Moon so far (as low as -749 parts per thousand), and could potentially represent a D-depleted reservoir in the lunar interior that had not been identified until now. Apatite in all of these intrusive rocks contains <267 ppm H2O, which is relatively low compared to apatites from the majority of studied mare basalts (200 to >6500 ppm H2O). Complexities in partitioning of volatiles into apatite make this comparison uncertain, but measurements of residual glass in KREEP basalt fragments in breccia 15358 independently show that the KREEP basaltic magmas were low in water. The source of 15358 contained similar to 10 ppm H2O, about an order of magnitude lower than the source of the Apollo 17 pyroclastic glass beads, suggesting potential variations in the distribution of water in the lunar interior. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Authors

I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.

Reviews

Primary Rating

4.7
Not enough ratings

Secondary Ratings

Novelty
-
Significance
-
Scientific rigor
-
Rate this paper

Recommended

No Data Available
No Data Available