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The Non-carbonaceous–Carbonaceous Meteorite Dichotomy

Journal Article · · Space Science Reviews
 [1];  [1];  [1];  [2];  [1];  [3];  [4]
  1. Univ. of Münster (Germany)
  2. Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
  3. Observatoire de la Cote d’Azur, Nice (France)
  4. Univ. of California, Santa Cruz, CA (United States)
The isotopic dichotomy between non-carbonaceous (NC) and carbonaceous (CC) meteorites indicates that meteorite parent bodies derive from two genetically distinct reservoirs, which presumably were located inside (NC) and outside (CC) the orbit of Jupiter and remained isolated from each other for the first few million years of the solar system. Here we review the discovery of the NC–CC dichotomy and its implications for understanding the early history of the solar system, including the formation of Jupiter, the dynamics of terrestrial planet formation, and the origin and nature of Earth’s building blocks. The isotopic difference between the NC and CC reservoirs is probably inherited from the solar system’s parental molecular cloud and has been maintained through the rapid formation of Jupiter that prevented significant exchange of material from inside (NC) and outside (CC) its orbit. The growth and/or migration of Jupiter resulted in inward scattering of CC bodies, which accounts for the co-occurrence of NC and CC bodies in the present-day asteroid belt and the delivery of presumably volatile-rich CC bodies to the growing terrestrial planets. Earth’s primitive mantle, at least for siderophile elements like Mo, has a mixed NC–CC composition, indicating that Earth accreted CC bodies during the final stages of its growth, perhaps through the Moon-forming giant impactor. The late-stage accretion of CC bodies to Earth is sufficient to account for the entire budget of Earth’s water and highly volatile species.
Research Organization:
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
German Research Foundation (DFG); National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA); USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC52-07NA27344
OSTI ID:
1844068
Report Number(s):
LLNL-JRNL--812087; 1019014
Journal Information:
Space Science Reviews, Journal Name: Space Science Reviews Journal Issue: 4 Vol. 216; ISSN 0038-6308
Publisher:
SpringerCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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