⁵³Mn-⁵³Cr and ²⁶Al-²⁶Mg ages of a feldspathic lithology in polymict ureilites

Journal Article · Thu Jul 01 00:00:00 EDT 2010 · Earth and Planetary Science Letters

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2010.04.036· OSTI ID:1165830

Goodrich, Cyrena Anne ^[1]; Hutcheon, Ian D. ^[2]; Kita, Noriko T. ^[3]; Huss, Gary R. ^[4]; Cohen, Barbara Anne ^[5]; Keil, Klaus

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1. Planetary Science Institute. Tucson, AZ (United States)
2. Glenn T. Seaborg Institute. Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
3. Dept. of Geoscience. Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States)
4. NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC), Huntsville, AL (United States)
5. Hawaii Institute of Geophysics and Planetology. Univ. of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI (United States)

We report ⁵³Mn–⁵³Cr and ²⁶Al–²⁶Mg isotopic data, obtained by in-situ SIMS analysis, for feldspathic clasts in polymict ureilites DaG 319 and DaG 165. The analyzed clasts belong to the “albitic lithology,” the most abundant population of indigenous feldspathic materials in polymict ureilites, and are highly fractionated igneous assemblages of albitic plagioclase, Fe-rich pyroxenes, phosphates, ilmenite, silica, and Fe(Mn, K, P, Ti)-enriched glass. Glass in DaG 165 clast 19 has extremely high and variable ⁵⁵Mn/⁵²Cr ratios (500–58,000) and shows correlated ⁵³Cr excesses up to ~ 1500‰, clearly indicating the presence of live ⁵³Mn at the time of formation. The slope of the well-correlated isochron defined by glass and pyroxenes from this clast corresponds to (⁵³Mn/⁵⁵Mn) = (2.84 ± 0.10) × 10^-6 (2σ). Data for less ⁵⁵Mn/⁵²Cr-enriched glasses from DaG 319 clast B1, as well as phosphates from several other clasts, are consistent with this isochron. The ⁵³Mn/⁵⁵Mn ratio obtained from the isochron implies that these clasts are 0.70 ± 0.18 Ma younger than the D'Orbigny angrite, corresponding to the absolute age of 4563.72 ± 0.22 Ma. Plagioclase in DaG 319 clast B1 has a fairly constant ²⁷Al/²⁴Mg ratio of ~ 900 and shows resolvable ²⁶Mg excesses of ~ 2‰. The slope of the isochron defined by pyroxene and plagioclase in this clast is (3.0 ± 1.1) × 10^-7 (2σ), corresponding to a time difference of 5.4 (-0.3/+0.5) Ma after CAI (assuming the canonical initial ²⁶Al/²⁷Al ratio of 5 × 10^-5) and an age 0.5 (-0.3/+0.5) Ma younger than D'Orbigny. Its absolute age (relative to D'Orbigny) is 4563.9 (+ 0.4/-0.5) Ma, in agreement with the ⁵³Mn–⁵³Cr age from clast 19. These data provide the first high-precision age date, ~ 5.4 Ma after CAI, for ureilites, giving a minimum estimate for the age of differentiation of their parent asteroid. Interpretation of this age for the thermal and physical history of that asteroid depends on a number of currently unknown or model-dependent parameters, including its size, bulk composition, and oxidation state, and the petrologic relationship between the feldspathic clasts and main group ureilites.

• Research Organization: Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• DOE Contract Number: AC52-07NA27344
• OSTI ID: 1165830
• Journal Information: Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Vol. 295, Issue 3-4; ISSN 0012-821X
• Publisher: Elsevier
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

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