Redistribution of alkaline elements in association with aqueous activity in the early solar system
Hiroshi Hidaka, Takuya Higuchi, and Shigekazu Yoneda
The Astrophysical Journal, Volume 815, Number 1
Published 2015 December 10
“It is known that the Sayama meteorite (CM2) shows an extensive signature for aqueous alteration on the meteorite parent body, and that most of the primary minerals in the chondrules are replaced with phyllosilicates as the result of the aqueous alteration. In this paper, it is confirmed from the observation of two-dimensional Raman spectra that a part of olivine in a chondrule collected from the Sayama chondrite is serpentinized. Ion microprobe analysis of the chondrule showed that alkaline elements such as Rb and Cs are heterogeneously redistributed in the chondrule. The result of higher Rb and Cs contents in serpentinized phases in the chondrule rather than in other parts suggested the selective adsorption of alkaline elements into the serpentine in association with early aqueous activity on the meteorite parent body. Furthermore Ba isotopic analysis provided variations of 135Ba/138Ba and 137Ba/138Ba in the chondrule. This result was consistent with our previous isotopic data suggesting isotopic evidence for the existence of the presently extinct nuclide 135Cs in the Sayama meteorite, but the abundance of 135Cs in the solar system remains unclear because of large analytical uncertainties.”
