Planetary Science Research Discoveries

Planetary scientists sharing ideas and discoveries.

Planetary Science Research Discoveries (PSRD) is an educational site sharing the latest research by NASA-sponsored scientists on meteorites, asteroids, planets, moons, and other materials in our Solar System. The website is supported by the Cosmochemistry Program of NASA's Science Mission Directorate and by Hawai'i Space Grant Consortium and is a vital link for planetary and space sciences, and for learning how science works.

Supported by NASA's SMD Cosmochemistry Program and Hawai'i Space Grant Consortium. RSS feed Share

» Meteoritic Minerals Tell a Story of Multistage Cooling, Break-up, and Reassembly of an Asteroid

(posted April 30, 2013)

Compositional variations in minerals in H-chondrites indicate at least two vastly different cooling rates at different temperatures, suggesting fragmentation, cooling of the fragments, and reassembly into a second-generation rubble pile. » Full article.
You can also download a pdf version.

PSRD-multistage-cooling.pdf

6 MOST RECENT HEADLINE ARTICLES. [ V I E W A L L ]

» New Martian Meteorite is Similar to Typical Martian Crust
A newly-identified Martian meteorite from Northwest Africa is not like other Martian meteorites, but has a chemical composition similar to the average Martian crust.

» Zinc Isotopes Provide Clues to Volatile Loss During Moon Formation
Ratios of zinc isotopes indicate evaporation of zinc (and other volatiles) during formation of the Moon.

» Dating Transient Heating Events in the Solar Protoplanetary Disk
Startlingly precise dating of components in primitive meteorites indicate contemporaneous formation of calcium-aluminum-rich inclusions (CAIs) and chondrules.

» Exploring the Mantle of Mars
Cosmochemistry and geophysics experts meet to discuss what we know and do not yet know about the composition, structure, and evolution of the Martian mantle.

» How Much Water is Inside Mars?
The interior of Mars appears to be as wet as the interior of Earth.

» Leftovers from Ancient Lunar Impactors
A systematic search for meteorite fragments in ancient regolith breccias confirms chondritic impactors on the Moon.

In this series of articles PSRD highlights the essential tools and amazing technology used by talented scientists seeking to unravel how the solar system formed.

In this series of reports PSRD gives quick views of big advances in cosmochemistry, with links to further details.

» Studying the Most Primitive Extraterrestrial Dust -- Isotopic compositions and presolar grain abundances from interplanetary dust particles.

» The Surprise Meteorite Fall in Russia, February, 2013 -- The meteoroid, meteor, and ordinary chondrite in the news.

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This section of PSRD contains annotated slide sets that are associated with our headline articles. We hope you find the slides useful for your own talks and presentations.

This section of PSRD contains links to general information about meteorites, planetary science, and classroom activities.

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