June 29, 2018
Research Highlight
Rapid Alteration of Meteorites
Fragments of the Sutter’s Mill meteorite fall collected by NASA Ames and SETI Institute meteor astronomer Peter Jenniskens in the evening of Tuesday April 24, 2012, two days after the fall. This was the second recovered find.Image credit: NASA Ames/Eric James.
A recent study provides new information about the effects of rapid alteration on chondritic meteorites once they reach the Earth’s surface. Scientists examined pieces of the Sutter’s Mill meteorite. Two samples were collected within two days of the meteorite arriving on Earth and prior to a rain event. Two additional samples were collected after the meteorite had been exposed to rain.
The study, “Rapid effects of terrestrial alteration on highly siderophile elements in the Sutter’s Mill meteorite,” was published in the journal Meteoritics and Planetary Science. This work was supported by the Emerging Worlds Program. The NASA Astrobiology Program provides resources for Emerging Worlds and other Research and Analysis programs within the NASA Science Mission Directorate (SMD) that solicit proposals relevant to astrobiology research.