Large sulfur isotope fractionation in lunar volcanic glasses reveals the magmatic differentiation and degassing of the Moon
Open Access
- 26 February 2021
- journal article
- research article
- Published by American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in Science Advances
- Vol. 7 (9), eabe4641
- https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abe4641
Abstract
Sulfur isotope variations in mantle-derived lavas provide important constraints on the evolution of planetary bodies. Here, we report the first in situ measurements of sulfur isotope ratios dissolved in primitive volcanic glasses and olivine-hosted melt inclusions recovered from the Moon by the Apollo 15 and 17 missions. The new data reveal large variations in 34S/32S ratios, which positively correlates with sulfur and titanium contents within and between the distinct compositional groups of volcanic glasses analyzed. Our results uncover several magmatic events that fractionated the primordial sulfur isotope composition of the Moon: the segregation of the lunar core and the crystallization of the lunar magma ocean, which led to the formation of the heterogeneous sources of the lunar magmatism, followed by magma degassing during generation, transport, and eruption of the lunar lavas. Whether the Earth’s and Moon’s interiors share a common 34S/32S ratio remains a matter of debate.Funding Information
- NASA Solar System Workings (80NSSC20K0461)
This publication has 57 references indexed in Scilit:
- Non-chondritic sulphur isotope composition of the terrestrial mantleNature, 2013
- Sulfur Isotopes in Magmatic-Hydrothermal Systems, Melts, and MagmasReviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry, 2011
- Diffusion Data in Silicate MeltsReviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry, 2010
- Diffusion of H, C, and O Components in Silicate MeltsReviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry, 2010
- Thermal and Magmatic Evolution of the MoonReviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry, 2006
- Major element and primary sulfur concentrations in Apollo 12 mare basalts: The view from melt inclusionsMeteoritics & Planetary Science, 2005
- Solar Wind Record on the Moon: Deciphering Presolar from Planetary NitrogenScience, 2000
- The composition of the EarthChemical Geology, 1995
- The origin of KREEPReviews of Geophysics, 1979
- The Apollo 15 Lunar Samples: A Preliminary DescriptionScience, 1972