Skip to main content
U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Constraints on the Formation Age of Cometary Material from the NASA Stardust Mission

Journal Article · · Science
OSTI ID:980892
We measured the {sup 26}Al-{sup 26}Mg isotope systematics of a {approx} 5-micrometer refractory particle, Coki, returned from comet 81P/Wild 2 in order to relate the time scales of formation of cometary inclusions to their meteoritic counterparts. The data show no evidence of radiogenic {sup 26}Mg and define an upper limit to the abundance of {sup 26}Al at the time of particle formation: {sup 26}Al/{sup 27}Al < 1 x 10-5. The absence of {sup 26}Al indicates that Coki formed >1.7 million years after the oldest solids in the solar system, calcium- and aluminum-rich inclusions (CAIs). The data suggest that high-temperature inner solar system material formed, was subsequently transferred to the Kuiper Belt, and was incorporated into comets several million years after CAI formation.
Research Organization:
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
DOE Contract Number:
W-7405-ENG-48
OSTI ID:
980892
Report Number(s):
LLNL-JRNL-420385
Journal Information:
Science, Journal Name: Science Journal Issue: 5977 Vol. 328; ISSN 0193-4511; ISSN SCEHDK
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

Similar Records

Light element isotopic compositions of cometary matter returned by the STARDUST mission
Journal Article · Tue Oct 10 00:00:00 EDT 2006 · Science · OSTI ID:902356

INCORPORATION OF A LATE-FORMING CHONDRULE INTO COMET WILD 2
Journal Article · Tue Feb 14 23:00:00 EST 2012 · Astrophysical Journal Letters · OSTI ID:22048076

Evidence for Reduced, Carbon-rich Regions in the Solar Nebula from an Unusual Cometary Dust Particle
Journal Article · Fri Oct 20 00:00:00 EDT 2017 · Astrophysical Journal · OSTI ID:22679744