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Lunar glasses and micro-breccias: properties and origin
Science (New York, N.Y.)
|January 30, 1970
Summary
Lunar impact events create glasses and chondrule-like particles through shock melting. These impact-generated rocks resemble chondrites but confirm the moon is not their source, with secondary impacts also noted.
Area of Science:
- Lunar geology and impact cratering processes.
- Cosmochemistry and petrology of extraterrestrial materials.
Background:
- Impacts are significant rock-forming processes on the Moon.
- Previous understanding of lunar glass and chondrule formation lacked direct impact evidence.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the formation mechanisms of lunar glasses and chondrule-like particles.
- To determine the role of impact shock melting in lunar rock genesis.
- To assess the Moon's potential as a source for meteoritic chondrites.
Main Methods:
- Electron and ion-probe analyses for major and minor element composition.
- Microscopic examination of rock textures, including welding and shock lithification.
- Analysis of impact craters on a nickel-iron sample.
Main Results:
- Most lunar glasses and chondrule-like particles result from shock melting of pyroxene, plagioclase, and ilmenite.
- Direct evidence confirms chondrule-like molten droplets form during lunar impacts.
- Impact-lithified rocks are texturally similar to chondrites, but compositional differences exclude lunar origin for chondrites.
- Evidence of secondary impacts from accelerated lunar matter was observed.
Conclusions:
- Impact shock melting is a primary mechanism for forming glasses and chondrule-like particles on the Moon.
- The Moon is not the source of meteoritic chondrites, despite textural similarities in impact-generated rocks.
- Secondary impacts play a notable role in lunar surface processes.
