Mineralogy and petrology of comet 81P/wild 2 nucleus samples
The bulk of the comet 81P/Wild 2 (hereafter Wild 2) samples returned to Earth by the Stardust spacecraft appear to be weakly constructed mixtures of nanometer-scale grains, with occasional much larger (over 1 micrometer) ferromagnesian silicates, Fe-Ni sulfides, Fe-Ni metal, and accessory phases. The very wide range of olivine and low-Ca pyroxene compositions in comet Wild 2 requires a wide range of formation conditions, probably reflecting very different formation locations in the protoplanetary disk. The restricted compositional ranges of Fe-Ni sulfides, the wide range for silicates, and the absence of hydrous phases indicate that comet Wild 2 experienced little or no aqueous alteration. Less abundant Wild 2 materials include a refractory particle, whose presence appears to require radial transport in the early protoplanetary disk.
Citation Information
Publication Year | 2006 |
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Title | Mineralogy and petrology of comet 81P/wild 2 nucleus samples |
DOI | 10.1126/science.1135842 |
Authors | M.E. Zolensky, T.J. Zega, H. Yano, S. Wirick, A.J. Westphal, M.K. Weisberg, I. Weber, J.L. Warren, M.A. Velbel, A. Tsuchiyama, P. Tsou, A. Toppani, N. Tomioka, K. Tomeoka, N. Teslich, M. Taheri, J. Susini, R. Stroud, T. Stephan, F.J. Stadermann, C.J. Snead, S.B. Simon, A. Simionovici, T.H. See, F. Robert, F.J.M. Rietmeijer, W. Rao, M.C. Perronnet, D.A. Papanastassiou, K. Okudaira, K. Ohsumi, I. Ohnishi, K. Nakamura-Messenger, T. Nakamura, S. Mostefaoui, T. Mikouchi, A. Meibom, G. Matrajt, M.A. Marcus, H. Leroux, L. Lemelle, L. Le, A. Lanzirotti, F. Langenhorst, A.N. Krot, L.P. Keller, A.T. Kearsley, D. Joswiak, D. Jacob, H. Ishii, R. Harvey, K. Hagiya, L. Grossman, J.H. Grossman, G.A. Graham, M. Gounalle, P. Gillet, M.J. Genge, G. Flynn, T. Ferroir, S. Fallon, D.S. Ebel, Z.R. Dai, P. Cordier, B. Clark, M. Chi, Anna L. Butterworth, D.E. Brownlee, J.C. Bridges, S. Brennan, A. Brearley, J.P. Bradley, P. Bleuet, P.A. Bland, R. Bastien |
Publication Type | Article |
Publication Subtype | Journal Article |
Series Title | Science |
Index ID | 70028902 |
Record Source | USGS Publications Warehouse |