Meteorite Collection Manager Dr. Laurence Garvie was recently featured on ABC 15 news, providing subject matter expertise on a fireball observed north of Prescott, Arizona, February 16th.
Over 65 witnesses to the event have logged details on the American Meteor Society website, and the Yavapai Sheriff's Office received reports from several local residents who heard a loud boom at the time.
March 19 is Sun Devil Giving Day – 24 hours to show the world what you can accomplish when you join forces to support Arizona State University!
Individually, each of us is part of ASU’s rich tradition of giving. Collectively, we are changing the world and expanding our universe.
Center Assistant Research Scientist Dr. Jemma Davidson and Center Interim Director Dr. Devin Schrader are co-authors of a new paper on the origins of the acapulcoite-lodranite family.
As defined by the Meteoritical Society, these equigranular primitive achondrites show subchondritic compositions, with mineral assemblages similar to, but distinct from, ordinary chondrites. Acapulcoites are finer grained than lodranites and some rare members contain relict chondrules. Based on their bulk composition and broadly chondritic mineralogy, acapulcoite-lodranite likely formed as the result of partial melting of a chondritic precursor.
The meteorite described in the paper, GRV 020043, contains more chondrules than any other acapulcoite-lodranite, and is the least heated member of the acapulcoite-lodranite family studied to date. The authors, therefore, infer that GRV 020043 may, in fact, represent the chondritic precursor to the acapulcoite-lodranite group and, thus, provide invaluable insight into this unique meteorite group.
The paper, “Grove Mountains (GRV) 020043: Insights into acapulcoite-lodranite genesis from the most primitive member”, is published in the journal Geochemistry, and available to read, free of charge until January 11, 2020.
Photo: Lodran meteorite; copyright ASU/CMS.
McCoy T. J., Corrigan C. M., Dickinson T. L., Benedix G. K., Schrader D. L., and Davidson J. (2019) Grove Mountains (GRV) 020043: Insights into Acapulcoite-Lodranite genesis from the most primitive member. Geochemistry 79: 125536.
The Center for Meteorite Studies at Arizona State University is pleased to announce the application opportunity for the 2020 Nininger Student Travel Award for undergraduate and graduate students pursuing research in meteoritics and planetary sciences.
The Nininger Student Travel Award supports travel to the Lunar and Planetary Science Conference (LPSC) of up to 4 School of Earth & Space Exploration undergraduate and graduate students to present their latest results.
For details on the award and application process, click here!
H
aving successfully defended her dissertation in September, Center alumna Dr. Emilie Dunham is preparing to collect meteorites from Antarctica this week!
As a member of the US-led Antarctic Search for Meteorites program (ANSMET), she'll be collecting meteorites from stranding surfaces along the Transantarctic Mountains. To date, ANSMET has recovered over 22,000 meteorites – these meteorites are used by scientists around the world, whose research is leading to new knowledge of the early Solar System and providing invaluable insight into its geologic history.
Photo: Dr. Emilie Dunham presents her research at the annual Lunar and Planetary Science Conference. ASU/CMS.
You can follow the 2019-20 ANSMET team members via their blog and learn about their preparation for living in extreme cold, what makes Antarctica such a great location to collect meteorites, and the team's progress through the field season.
Dr. Dunham is not the first to make the journey from hot Arizona desert to cold Antarctic desert; in 2012-13, ASU Professors Meenakshi Wadhwa (then Director of the Center for Meteorite Studies) and Tom Sharp were part of an ANSMET team that took 25,000 pounds of gear – including tents, snow mobiles, meteorite collection equipment, solar panels, fuel, cooking stoves and food – for six weeks of remote field camping in extreme cold conditions. Read more about their experience here.
Photo: Prof. Meenakshi Wadhwa at ANSMET campsite, Mount Bumstead. ASU/SESE.
Center Collection Curator Dr. Laurence Garvie and PhD Candidate Soumya Ray are co-authors on a new research paper published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets.
The paper, Hypervelocity impact experiments in iron-nickel ingots and iron meteorites: Implications for the NASA Psyche mission, details the results of a series of high-velocity impact experiments performed on iron meteorites and cast metal ingots with iron and nickel compositions similar to iron meteorites.
These results will be utilized to interpret the nature and history of asteroid Psyche when the ASU-led NASA Psyche mission reaches its destination.
Marchi S., Durda D. D., Polanskey C. A., Asphaug E., Bottke W. F., Elkins-Tanton L. T., Garvie, L. A. J., Ray S., Chocron S., and Williams D. A. (2019) Hypervelocity impact experiments in iron-nickel ingots and iron meteorites: Implications for the NASA Psyche mission. Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets. 24 October 2019. https://doi.org/10.1029/2019JE005927
The mission plans launch in 2022 and arrival at Psyche, between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter, in 2026. This selected asteroid is made almost entirely of nickel-iron metal. It offers evidence about violent collisions that created Earth and other terrestrial planets.
Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Arizona State Univ./Space Systems Loral/Peter Rubin.
