Astronomical context of Solar System formation from molybdenum isotopes in meteorite inclusions
Gregory A Brennecka1,2, Christoph Burkhardt2, Gerrit Budde2,3
1Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA, USA. brennecka2@llnl.gov.
Abstract:
Calcium-aluminum-rich inclusions (CAIs) in meteorites are the first solids to have formed in the Solar System, defining the epoch of its birth on an absolute time scale. This provides a link between astronomical observations of star formation and cosmochemical studies of Solar System formation. We show that the distinct molybdenum isotopic compositions of CAIs cover almost the entire compositional range of material that formed in the protoplanetary disk. We propose that CAIs formed while the Sun was in transition from the protostellar to pre-main sequence (T Tauri) phase of star formation, placing Solar System formation within an astronomical context. Our results imply that the bulk of the material that formed the Sun and Solar System accreted within the CAI-forming epoch, which lasted less than 200,000 years.
Related Concept Videos
Conditions on Early Earth
Atomic Emission Spectroscopy: Overview
Atomic Mass
Atomic Spectroscopy: Effects of Temperature
At thermal equilibrium, the relative populations of excited and ground state atoms can be estimated using the Maxwell–Boltzmann distribution. For example, an increase in temperature...
Reduced Mass Coordinates: Isolated Two-body Problem
Molar Mass


