Planetary scientists sharing ideas and discoveries.

Planetary Science Research Discoveries (PSRD) is an educational site sharing the latest research being made by NASA-sponsored scientists on meteorites, planets, and other bodies 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 Cosmochemistry Program and Hawai'i Space Grant Consortium.

Archive

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Articles listed by publication date.

13 NOV 09	An Even More Precise View of Aluminum-26 in the Solar Nebula by G. Jeffrey Taylor New, precise analyses of the short-lived isotope aluminum-26 indicate it was distributed uniformly throughout the early solar system, an important clue to its origin.	PSRD-Al-26-distribution.pdf
26 OCT 09	Kaidun--A Meteorite with Everything but the Kitchen Sink by Linda M. V. Martel This unique breccia is called a single-stone meteorite collection.	PSRD-Kaidun_meteorite.pdf
18 SEPT 09	The Growing Diversity of Lunar Basalts by G. Jeffrey Taylor A lunar basaltic meteorite adds complexity to the already complicated story of mare basalt volcanism on the Moon.	PSRD-NWA032.pdf
10 AUG 09	Space Weathering Agent: Solar Wind by Linda M. V. Martel Bombardment of helium ions on olivine in the laboratory simulates space weathering of asteroids and other airless bodies.	PSRD-solarwind.helium.pdf
6 JULY 09	Better Know A Meteorite Collection: Natural History Museum in London, United Kingdom by Linda M. V. Martel PSRD highlights places and people around the world who play central roles in caring for and analyzing meteorites.	PSRD-Meteorites.London.Museum.pdf
25 JUNE 09	The Complicated Geologic History of Asteroid 4 Vesta by G. Jeffrey Taylor Meteorites from asteroid 4 Vesta show that it contains patches of granite-like rock.	PSRD-Vesta.granite-like.pdf
11 MAY 09	Better Know A Meteorite Collection: Natural History Museum in Vienna, Austria by Linda M. V. Martel PSRD highlights places and people around the world who play central roles in caring for and analyzing meteorites.	PSRD-Meteorites.Vienna.Museum.pdf
8 MAY 09	Mars Crust: Made of Basalt by G. Jeffrey Taylor Chemical analyses of rocks on the Martian surface indicate that the Martian crust was built of basalt lava flows not much different from those on Earth.	PSRD-Mars.Basaltic.Crust.pdf
25 MAR 09	Time to Solidify an Ocean of Magma by G. Jeffrey Taylor A small mineral grain places limits on how long it took the lunar magma ocean to solidify.	PSRD-magmaOceanSolidification.pdf
19 FEB 09	More Evidence for Multiple Meteorite Magmas by G. Jeffrey Taylor Cosmochemists show that a pair of meteorites formed in an asteroid that erupted a newly-recognized type of asteroidal magma.	PSRD-asteroidalMagmas.pdf
27 JAN 09	The Crazy Mixed-Up Lunar Crust by Linda M. V. Martel The horizontal and vertical distribution of well-mixed basin ejecta has lunar-wide geochemical ramifications.	PSRD-lunarBasins.pdf
14 DEC 08	Wee Rocky Droplets in Comet Dust by G. Jeffrey Taylor and Linda M. V. Martel Tiny flash-melted objects in dust collected from comet Wild 2 were transported from the inner Solar System to the outer reaches where comets formed.	PSRD-cometDust.pdf
20 NOV 08	Tiny Molten Droplets, Dusty Clouds, and Planet Formation by G. Jeffrey Taylor Roughly constant sodium concentration during chondrule crystallization suggests that these molten droplets formed in regions of the solar nebula that were enriched in rocky dust.	PSRD-chondrule_sodium.pdf
22 SEPT 08	The Bone-Dry Moon Might be Damp by G. Jeffrey Taylor Cosmochemists have written in stone that the Moon is almost totally devoid of water, but new analyses of volcanic glasses suggest that they need to do some editing.	PSRD-MoonWater.pdf
8 JULY 08	Heating, Cooling, and Cratering: One Asteroid's Complicated Story by G. Jeffrey Taylor Cooling rate data indicate that the H-chondrite parent asteroid was deeply cratered as it cooled slowly.	PSRD-H-chondrite-parent.pdf
30 MAY 08	Meteorites Found on Mars by Linda M. V. Martel No surprise that there are meteorites on other planets. Now that we've seen them on Mars, what do we know about them and what does their geochemistry tell us about the environment where they landed?	PSRD-MetsOnMars.pdf
29 APRIL 08	A Farside Geochemical Window into the Moon by Linda M. V. Martel Findings show geochemical enhancements in the Dewar region are caused by thorium-rich mare basalt fragments in the regolith.	PSRD-Dewar-Th.pdf
22 FEB 08	Compositional Balancing Before Moon Formation by G. Jeffrey Taylor The identical oxygen isotopic composition of Earth and Moon might be explained by exchange of material between the proto-Earth and the surrounding proto-lunar disk.	PSRD-EarthMoonFormation.pdf
19 DEC 07	Chips Off an Old Lava Flow by G. Jeffrey Taylor Lunar meteorite Kalahari 009 contains fragments of basalt about 4.35 billion years old, a record-breaking old age for mare basalt.	PSRD-cryptomareSample.pdf
27 NOV 07	Getting to Know Vesta by Linda M. V. Martel Scientists are primed with geochemical data from HED meteorites for Dawn's encounter with asteroid 4 Vesta.	PSRD-HEDs-Vesta.pdf
30 OCT 07	Did an Impact Make the Mysterious Microscopic Magnetite Crystals in ALH 84001? by G. Jeffrey Taylor Tiny crystals of magnetite in Martian meteorite ALH 84001 might have been made when shock waves decomposed iron carbonate.	PSRD-magnitite-origin.pdf
17 SEPT 07	Melted Crumbs from Asteroid Vesta by Linda M. V. Martel Researchers studying some of the rarest of the smallest meteorites call them melted crumbs from asteroid Vesta.	PSRD-cosmicSpherules.pdf
6 JULY 07	The Sun's Crowded Delivery Room by G. Jeffrey Taylor Isotopes in meteorites suggest that the Sun formed in a dense cluster of stars.	PSRD-iron-60.pdf
19 JUNE 07	Oxidants from Pulverized Minerals by Linda M. V. Martel Laboratory measurements of hydrogen peroxide produced from crushed basaltic minerals immersed in water have important implications for Martian and lunar dust.	PSRD-H2O2.pdf
18 APRIL 07	When Worlds Really Did Collide by Edward Scott, Jijin Yang, and Joseph Goldstein Cosmochemical studies and dynamical models of protoplanetary collisions suggest a new origin for iron meteorites.	PSRD-irons.pdf
3 APRIL 07	Two Views of the Moon's Composition by G. Jeffrey Taylor There is a striking dichotomy in estimates of the abundance of refractory elements in the Moon.	PSRD-Moon2Views.pdf
29 JAN 07	Did Martian Meteorites Come From These Sources? by Linda M. V. Martel Researchers find large rayed craters on Mars and consider the reasons why they may be launching sites of Martian meteorites.	PSRD-MarsRayedCraters.pdf
25 JAN 07	Organic Globules from the Cold Far Reaches of the Proto-Solar Disk by G. Jeffrey Taylor Hollow organic globules in the Tagish Lake meteorite probably formed far from the proto-Sun, maybe even in interstellar space before our Solar System formed.	PSRD-organicGlobules.pdf
19 DEC 06	Squeezing Meteorites to Reveal the Martian Mantle by G. Jeffrey Taylor Experiments at high temperature and pressure give clues to the composition of the interior of Mars.	PSRD-Y-980459.pdf
27 NOV 06	Hit-and-Run as Planets Formed by G. Jeffrey Taylor Collisions between large protoplanets as the planets formed may have ripped some of them to shreds, producing molten asteroid-sized bodies, driving off water and other volatiles, and scrambling partially molten protoplanets.	PSRD-hit-and-run.pdf
8 NOV 06	Recent Gas Escape from the Moon by G. Jeffrey Taylor Gases may have escaped from the Moon as recently as a million years ago, implying that the lunar interior is not as lethargic as conventional wisdom dictates.	PSRD-MoonGas.pdf
26 OCT 06	LIBS: Remote Chemical Analysis by Linda M. V. Martel Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is an active remote sensing technique used for the rapid characterization of elemental compositions of materials.	PSRD-libs.pdf
24 AUG 06	Wandering Gas Giants and Lunar Bombardment by G. Jeffrey Taylor Outward migration of Saturn might have triggered a dramatic increase in the bombardment rate on the Moon 3.9 billion years ago, an idea testable with lunar samples.	PSRD-cataclysmDynamics.pdf
21 JULY 06	Iron Meteorites as the Not-So-Distant Cousins of Earth by William F. Bottke and Linda M. V. Martel Numerical simulations suggest that some iron meteorites are fragments of the long lost precursor material that formed the Earth and other terrestrial planets.	PSRD-asteroidGatecrashers.pdf
14 JUNE 06	Fossil Meteorite Unearthed From Crater by Linda M. V. Martel A meteorite of unusual chondritic composition was found in a highly unlikely place, challenging how we think about colossal impact events on Earth.	PSRD-Morokweng.pdf
26 MAY 06	Interstellar Organic Matter in Meteorites by G. Jeffrey Taylor Carbonaceous chondrites contain organic compounds with high deuterium/hydrogen ratios, suggesting they formed in interstellar space.	PSRD-meteoriteOrganics.pdf
30 APRIL 06	Finding Basalt Chips from Distant Maria by G. Jeffrey Taylor Tossed chips of lava help fill in blanks in our knowledge of lunar basalts.	PSRD-basaltFragments.pdf
31 MAR 06	A Primordial and Complicated Ocean of Magma on Mars by G. Jeffrey Taylor Geophysical and geochemical calculations indicate that total melting of Mars during its formation could have led to large-scale heterogeneities in its mantle.	PSRD-mars_magmaOcean.pdf
28 FEB 06	Ion Microprobe by Linda M. V. Martel and G. Jeffrey Taylor Instrument of Cosmochemistry	PSRD-ion_microprobe.pdf
31 JAN 06	Cosmochemistry from Nanometers to Light-Years by G. Jeffrey Taylor Cosmochemists and astronomers test theories on the formation of stars and planets.	PSRD-protoplanetary.pdf
27 DEC 05	Magma and Water on Mars by G. Jeffrey Taylor Martian meteorites tell us part of the fascinating story about when volcanoes erupted and water flowed.	PSRD-Magma-WaterOnMars.pdf
22 NOV 05	Gamma Rays, Meteorites, Lunar Samples, and the Composition of the Moon by G. Jeffrey Taylor Lunar meteorites provide ground truth to help calibrate orbital geochemical data, allowing an estimate of the composition of the entire Moon.	PSRD-MoonComposition.pdf
21 OCT 05	Little Chondrules and Giant Impacts by G. Jeffrey Taylor Chondrules in metal-rich meteorites formed a couple of million years after most other chondrules, possibly by impact between moon-sized or larger objects.	PSRD-chondrules_impacts.pdf
30 SEPT 05	Portales Valley: Not Just Another Ordinary Chondrite by Alex Ruzicka and Melinda Hutson A melted meteorite gives a snapshot of the heat and shock that wracked an asteroid during the first stages of differentiation.	PSRD-PortalesValley.pdf
29 JULY 05	Martian Meteorites Record Surface Temperatures on Mars by G. Jeffrey Taylor Gases trapped in Martian meteorites indicate that Mars has been a cold desert for a long, long time.	PSRD-Mars_paleotemp.pdf
7 JULY 05	Squeezing and Heating Rock to Scope Out How Metallic Iron Dribbled to the Center of the Earth by G. Jeffrey Taylor Experiments showing how cobalt and nickel concentrate in molten metal shed light on the formation of Earth's metallic core.	PSRD-cobalt_and_nickel.pdf
31 MAY 05	Making Sense of Droplets Inside Droplets by G. Jeffrey Taylor The vexing presence of chondrules inside supposedly older calcium-aluminum-rich inclusions (CAIs) in chondrites makes sense if the CAIs were remelted.	PSRD-chondrulesCAIs.pdf
13 APRIL 05	Antarctic Guide to Martian Weathering by Linda M. V. Martel Soils in the Antarctic Dry Valleys contain traces of silicate alteration products and secondary salts much like those found in Martian meteorites.	PSRD-DryValleysSoils.pdf
31 JAN 05	Recent Activity on Mars: Fire and Ice by Linda M. V. Martel New images from Mars Express show evidence of recent volcanic and glacial activity on Mars, consistent with what we know from Martian meteorites and previous evaluations of the planet's internal heat production and climate.	PSRD-MarsRecently.pdf
23 DEC 04	Cosmochemistry and Human Exploration by G. Jeffrey Taylor Cosmochemistry plays an important role in developing local resources on the Moon and Mars, essential to sustained human presence in space.	PSRD-spaceResources.pdf
10 DEC 04	Composition of the Moon's Crust by Linda M. V. Martel New empirical calibrations of Lunar Prospector and Clementine data yield improved global maps of Th, K, and FeO.	PSRD-LunarCrust.pdf
31 OCT 04	New Lunar Meteorite Provides its Lunar Address and Some Clues about Early Bombardment of the Moon by G. Jeffrey Taylor A newly discovered meteorite from the Moon provides a detailed record of its history, allowing scientists to make a reasonable guess about where it came from on the Moon and to test ideas for the timing of early impact bombardment.	PSRD-SaU169.pdf
28 SEPT 04	Lunar Crater Rays Point to a New Lunar Time Scale by Linda M. V. Martel Optical maturity maps of rays, derived from Clementine multispectral data and calibrated with lunar sample analyses, provide a new way to define the two youngest time stratigraphic units on the Moon.	PSRD-LunarRays.pdf
26 AUG 04	Meteorite Shower in Park Forest, Illinois by Linda M. V. Martel An L5 chondrite strewnfield is centered at Park Forest, Illinois, a southern suburb of Chicago.	PSRD-ParkForest.pdf
5 JULY 04	New Mineral Proves an Old Idea about Space Weathering by Linda M. V. Martel A newly discovered vapor-deposited iron silicide in a lunar meteorite has been named hapkeite.	PSRD-newMineral.pdf
1 JULY 04	Carbonates in ALH 84001: Part of the Story of Water on Mars by Catherine M. Corrigan The study of multi-generational carbonate assemblages in Martian meteorite ALH 84001 reveals a complex history of crystal formation, growth, and alteration.	PSRD-carbonatesALH84001.pdf
23 JUNE 04	The Multifarious Martian Mantle by G. Jeffrey Taylor Detailed analyses of Martian meteorites reveal that the planet's interior preserves distinctive regions that formed 4.5 billion years ago.	PSRD-martianMantle.pdf
1 JUNE 04	Silicate Stardust in Meteorites by G. Jeffrey Taylor Silicates are the most abundant solids in disks around growing stars, but presolar silicates have not been found in even the most primitive meteorite--until now.	PSRD-silicatesMeteorites.pdf
21 APRIL 04	The Oldest Moon Rocks by Marc Norman Rocks from the lunar crust provide new clues to the age and origin of the Moon and the terrestrial planets.	PSRD-lunarAnorthosites.pdf
2 APRIL 04	Asteroid Heating: A Shocking View by G. Jeffrey Taylor Mineral intergrowths in chondritic meteorites may indicate that some asteroids were heated by impact.	PSRD-asteroidHeating.pdf
9 MAR 04	Tiny Traces of a Big Asteroid Breakup by Linda M. V. Martel Fossil meteorites and chromite grains record a hundred-fold increase in the number of meteorites that fell 480 million years ago compared to the meteorite influx today.	PSRD-fossilMeteorites.pdf
28 NOV 03	Hafnium, Tungsten, and the Differentiation of the Moon and Mars by G. Jeffrey Taylor Experiments help us understand the timing of core formation and nature of initial melting in the Moon and Mars.	PSRD-Hf-W.pdf
7 NOV 03	Pretty Green Mineral -- Pretty Dry Mars? by Linda M. V. Martel The discovery of olivine-bearing rocks on Mars underscores the need to understand weathering rates of silicates in the Martian environment.	PSRD-olivineMars.pdf
28 OCT 03	Show Me the Carbonates by Linda M. V. Martel Carbonate minerals intermingle with silicates in the Martian surface dust.	PSRD-carbonatesMars.pdf
29 AUG 03	A New Type of Stardust by G. Jeffrey Taylor Interplanetary dust particles contain rare grains that formed in stars older than the Sun.	PSRD-stardust.pdf
29 AUG 03	Gullied Slopes on Mars by Linda M. V. Martel Do the Martian gullies tell us something about the stability and distribution of near-surface water?	PSRD-MartianGullies.pdf
16 JULY 03	Ancient Floodwaters and Seas on Mars by Linda M. V. Martel Surface deposits within the northern lowlands support the oceans hypothesis.	PSRD-MartianSea.pdf
4 JUNE 03	The Moon's Dark, Icy Poles by Linda M. V. Martel Permanently shadowed regions on the Moon--where frozen water could be trapped--are more abundant and more widely distributed than originally thought.	PSRD-lunarShadows.pdf
21 MAY 03	Triggering the Formation of the Solar System by G. Jeffrey Taylor New data from meteorites indicates that formation of the Solar System was triggered by a supernova.	PSRD-SolarSystemTrigger.pdf
28 APRIL 03	Asteroidal Lava Flows by G. Jeffrey Taylor Meteorite studies indicate that we have pieces of lava flows from at least five asteroids.	PSRD-asteroidalLava.pdf
13 MAR 03	Gray Iron Oxide in Meridiani, Mars by Linda M. V. Martel A deposit of gray hematite in Terra Meridiani may suggest that water once circulated through the rock layers in this region of Mars.	PSRD-Meridiani.pdf
23 JAN 03	QUE 93148: A Part of the Mantle of Asteroid 4 Vesta? by Christine Floss A tiny meteorite tells a story of melting in the deep mantle of a big asteroid.	PSRD-QUE93148.pdf
12 DEC 02	Tagish Lake -- A Meteorite from the Far Reaches of the Asteroid Belt by David W. Mittlefehldt A new type of primitive meteorite with much to tell us about the formation of the solar system.	PSRD-TagishLake.pdf
25 NOV 02	Bands on Europa by Linda M. V. Martel Rifting at Earth's mid-ocean ridges is a good analogy for Europan band formation.	PSRD-EuropanBands.pdf
24 OCT 02	The First Rock in the Solar System by Steven B. Simon An aggregate of corundum, hibonite, and perovskite may be among the first rocks to form in the Solar System.	PSRD-firstRock.pdf
8 OCT 02	The Moon Beyond 2002 by G. Jeffrey Taylor A meeting of lunar scientists to outline research questions and future exploration plans.	PSRD-moon.pdf
30 SEPT 02	Using Aluminum-26 as a Clock for Early Solar System Events by Ernst Zinner Correspondence between ²⁶Al and Pb-Pb ages shows that ²⁶Al records a detailed record of events in the early solar system.	PSRD-Al26clock.pdf
25 SEPT 02	Dating the Earliest Solids in our Solar System by Alexander N. Krot Lead isotopic analyses give absolute formation ages of Ca-Al-rich inclusions and chondrules.	PSRD-isotopicAges.pdf
30 AUG 02	The Wet, Oxidizing Crust of Mars by G. Jeffrey Taylor Analysis of isotopes and oxide minerals in Martian meteorites indicate that many magmas interacted with a wet, oxidizing crust as they oozed from the Martian mantle to its reddish surface.	PSRD-oxidation.pdf
28 JUNE 02	Using Chondrites to Understand the Inside of Asteroid 433 Eros by Linda M. V. Martel Data from ordinary chondrite meteorites and from the NEAR mission suggest that asteroid 433 Eros is heavily fractured.	PSRD-ErosPorosity.pdf
5 JUNE 02	Dirty Ice on Mars by G. Jeffrey Taylor Instruments on the Odyssey spacecraft show that a lot of dirty ice sits within a meter of the surface in the south polar latitudes of Mars.	PSRD-MarsGRSice.pdf
22 MAY 02	The Tricky Business of Identifying Rocks on Mars by G. Jeffrey Taylor A new analysis of thermal emission spectra suggests a new interpretation for the composition of the Martian surface.	PSRD-MarsTES.pdf
13 MAY 02	Resolution of a Big Argument About Tiny Magnetic Minerals in Martian Meteorite by Edward R. D. Scott and David J. Barber Magnetic minerals in Martian meteorite ALH 84001 formed as a result of impact heating and decomposition of carbonate. They were never used as compasses by Martian microorganisms.	PSRD-ALH84001magnetite.pdf
28 FEB 02	Searching Antarctic Ice for Meteorites by Linda M. V. Martel Silver anniversary season: The vigorous life and times of the ANSMET team at Meteorite Hills resulted in a new set of 336 meteorites collected off the ice.	PSRD-meteoriteSearch.pdf
26 FEB 02	The Composition of Asteroid 433 Eros by G. Jeffrey Taylor X-rays and reflected light suggest that asteroid 433 Eros is similar in composition to the most common type of meteorite--maybe.	PSRD-eros.pdf
3 DEC 01	Oxygen Isotopes Give Clues to the Formation of Planets, Moons, and Asteroids by Edward R. D. Scott As they formed from gas and dust near the Sun, grains in some meteorites acquired oxygen that originated in numerous other stars that shone long before our solar system was born.	PSRD-Oisotopes.pdf
7 NOV 01	Meteorites on Ice by Linda M. V. Martel Antarctic meteorites provide a continuous and readily available supply of extraterrestrial materials, stimulating new research and ideas in cosmochemistry, planetary geology, astronomy, and astrobiology.	PSRD-metsOnIce.pdf
22 OCT 01	New Data, New Ideas, and Lively Debate about Mercury by G. Jeffrey Taylor A hundred scientists gathered to share new data and ideas about the important little planet closest to the Sun.	PSRD-MercuryMtg.pdf
21 AUG 01	Uranus, Neptune, and the Mountains of the Moon by G. Jeffrey Taylor The tardy formation of Uranus and Neptune might have caused the intense bombardment of the Moon 3.9 billion years ago.	PSRD-bombardment.pdf
26 JUNE 01	If Lava Mingled with Ground Ice on Mars by Linda M. V. Martel Planetary geologists use Icelandic volcanic formations called "rootless cones" to explain clusters of small cones on Mars.	PSRD-lavaIceMars.pdf
14 JUNE 01	Outflow Channels May Make a Case for a Bygone Ocean on Mars by Linda M. V. Martel Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter data have given scientists a new perspective of the dry channels in Chryse Planitia and a new approach to testing the Martian ancient ocean hypothesis.	PSRD-MarsChryse.pdf
24 APRIL 01	Gullies and Canyons, Rocks and Experiments: The Mystery of Water on Mars by G. Jeffrey Taylor The combination of analyses of Martian meteorites and laboratory experiments helps scientists understand how water in magma has changed the Martian crust and surface.	PSRD-waterFromRocks.pdf
2 MAR 01	Relicts from the Birth of the Solar System by G. Jeffrey Taylor Rapidly cooled silicate droplets found in unusual meteorites may have formed directly from the cloud of gas and dust surrounding the young Sun.	PSRD-relicts.pdf
28 FEB 01	Buckyballs and Gases May Mark Massive Extinction by G. Jeffrey Taylor Helium and argon isotopes in fullerenes suggest an impact triggered the incredible extinction that marks the end of the Permian period.	PSRD-permianImpact.pdf
26 FEB 01	The Europa Scene in the Voyager-Galileo Era by Linda M. V. Martel Voyager and Galileo images provide a 20-year perspective on the geology of Europa's water-ice surface.	PSRD-EuropaGeology.pdf
24 JAN 01	Lunar Meteorites and the Lunar Cataclysm by Barbara A. Cohen Dating of impact melts in lunar meteorites supports the idea that the Moon was intensely bombarded about 3.9 billion years ago.	PSRD-lunarCataclysm.pdf
5 DEC 00	Recipe for High-Titanium Lunar Magmas by G. Jeffrey Taylor Experiments shed light on how high-titanium lunar magmas formed.	PSRD-highTi.pdf
21 NOV 00	Mining the Moon, Mars, and Asteroids by G. Jeffrey Taylor Applied cosmochemistry plays a key role in plans to use the resources of the Moon, Mars, and asteroids.	PSRD-mining.pdf
30 SEPT 00	The Oldest Metal in the Solar System by G. Jeffrey Taylor Grains of metallic iron in some chondritic meteorites condensed from hot clouds of gas and dust while the Sun was forming.	PSRD-primitiveFeNi.pdf
31 AUG 00	A New Moon for the Twenty-First Century by G. Jeffrey Taylor Integrated studies of returned samples and remote sensing data reveal a Moon far different from the one scientists envisaged only a decade ago.	PSRD-newMoon.pdf
23 JUNE 00	The Surprising Lunar Maria by G. Jeffrey Taylor Global remote sensing data have given lunar scientists a startling new perspective of the titanium concentrations in the lava flows making up the lunar maria.	PSRD-lunarMaria.pdf
24 MAY 00	Liquid Water on Mars: The Story from Meteorites by G. Jeffrey Taylor Martian meteorites may have reacted with liquid water on Mars intermittently during the past 650 million years.	PSRD-wetMars.pdf
26 APRIL 00	Analyzing Next to Nothing by G. Jeffrey Taylor Cosmochemists can analyze astonishingly small particles, skills essential to the analysis of samples to be returned from comets, asteroids, Martian moons, and Mars.	PSRD-analyzingSmall.pdf
28 MAR 00	Supernova Debris in the Solar System by G. Jeffrey Taylor Calculations suggest that a supernova explosion would distribute its debris uniformly throughout the cloud of gas and dust from which the Solar System formed.	PSRD-supernovaDebris.pdf
10 MAR 00	Flash Heating by G. Jeffrey Taylor Extremely rapid heating of rocky materials in a furnace is possible, making it feasible to study the formation of melted droplets in meteorites.	PSRD-flashHeating.pdf
15 FEB 00	Jupiter's Hot, Mushy Moon by G. Jeffrey Taylor Very high lava flow temperatures on Io lead some scientists to propose that the satellite's interior is a swirling cauldron of partially molten rock.	PSRD-IoMagmaOcean.pdf
17 DEC 99	Difficult Experiments on Weird Rocks by G. Jeffrey Taylor Melting experiments on oxygen-depleted meteorites give clues about magma compositions and core formation in asteroids.	PSRD-indarch.pdf
17 DEC 99	Zapping Mars Rocks with Gamma Rays by G. Jeffrey Taylor One way to sterilize samples from Mars is to zap them with gamma rays. Will this ruin the rock for other studies? Apparently not.	PSRD-gammaRays.pdf
24 NOV 99	Purple Salt and Tiny Drops of Water in Meteorites by G. Jeffrey Taylor Two meteorites contain crystals of sodium chloride that have trapped tiny drops of ancient salty water.	PSRD-PurpleSalt.pdf
23 SEPT 99	The Moon at its Core by Linda M. V. Martel New evidence for a small lunar core strengthens the giant impact hypothesis for the origin of the Moon.	PSRD-MoonCore.pdf
24 AUG 99	Honeycombed Asteroids by G. Jeffrey Taylor Asteroids have lower densities than expected, probably because they have been disrupted and then reassembled into porous rubble piles.	PSRD-asteroidDensity.pdf
30 JULY 99	Fossils Blowing in the Wind: More Contamination of Antarctic Meteorites by G. Jeffrey Taylor Terrestrial microfossils occur in cracks in Antarctic meteorites, making it difficult to search for extraterrestrial life in meteorites.	PSRD-contamination.pdf
20 JULY 99	An Adulterated Martian Meteorite by G. Jeffrey Taylor Martian meteorite EETA79001 may have formed by impact melting and mixing of other Martian rocks, not by simple igneous activity as originally thought.	PSRD-EETA79001.pdf
3 JUNE 99	Martian Organic Matter in ALH84001? by G. Jeffrey Taylor Indigenous organic compounds in ALH84001 may be from meteorite bombardment of the surface of Mars.	PSRD-organicsBecker.pdf
21 APRIL 99	30th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference: Some Highlights by G. Jeffrey Taylor The annual LPSC featured bacteria, new views of the Moon, and an intriguing new meteorite.	PSRD-lpsc30.pdf
8 FEB 99	From a Cloud of Gas and Dust to an Asteroid with Percolating Hot Water by G. Jeffrey Taylor Isotopes of manganese and chromium indicate that chemical reactions involving hot water altered minerals on water-bearing asteroids during the same time interval that other asteroids were melted, between 7 and 16 million years after the first solids formed in the Solar System.	PSRD-fayalite.pdf
31 DEC 98	Origin of the Earth and Moon by G. Jeffrey Taylor First hand report of the December 1998 conference on the formation and very early history of the Earth and Moon.	PSRD-OriginEarthMoon.pdf
12 NOV 98	Dry Droplets of Fiery Rain by G. Jeffrey Taylor Experiments test an idea for the origin of droplets of rocky material melted before the planets formed.	PSRD-chondrules.pdf
24 SEPT 98	Europa's Salty Surface by G. Jeffrey Taylor Jupiter's moon Europa has salt deposits on its surface that may be the products of evaporation of water erupted from an ocean beneath the satellite's icy crust.	PSRD-EuropaSalts.pdf
24 SEPT 98	For a Cup of Water on Mars: Gusev Crater by Linda M. V. Martel Gusev crater's long history as a depositional site for water-laid sediments makes it a priority site for future biological explorations.	PSRD-GusevMars.pdf
17 JULY 98	The Biggest Hole in the Solar System by G. Jeffrey Taylor Recent missions have helped researchers determine the composition of one of the largest impact craters in the Solar System: South Pole-Aitken basin.	PSRD-spa.pdf
27 APR 98	Big Mountain, Big Landslide on Jupiter's Moon, Io by Linda M. V. Martel Thrust faulting and uplift of a large block of Io's crust may have created a mountain and the landslide on it.	PSRD-io.pdf
17 FEB 98	Organic Compounds in Martian Meteorites May Be Terrestrial Contaminants by A. J. T. Jull Carbon-14 measurements indicate that most of the organic compounds in martian meteorite ALH84001 were acquired on Earth, not Mars, weakening the case for fossil martian life in the meteorite.	PSRD-OrganicsALH84001.pdf
18 DEC 97	Fossils in Martian Meteorite: Real or Imagined? by G. Jeffrey Taylor Some scientists suggest that the small, wormy structures in martian meteorite ALH84001 are features of the crystals in the rock, decorated with artifacts introduced during sample preparation, not nanofossils. The discoverers of the fossil-like objects disagree.	PSRD-LifeonMarsUpdate2.pdf
11 DEC 97	Damage by Impact: the case at Meteor Crater, Arizona by Linda M. V. Martel A look at the pre- and post-impact environments at Meteor Crater, Arizona provides insight into Earth's impact history. Just how often does this sort of impact event occur on Earth? We'll examine the potential hazards.	PSRD-impactBlast.pdf
20 OCT 97	Moonbeams and Elements by G. Jeffrey Taylor The amount of light reflected off the Moon can be used to determine elemental abundances from orbit.	PSRD-MoonFeO.pdf
22 AUG 97	The Martian Interior by G. Jeffrey Taylor Data from martian meteorites and high pressure experiments give us a glimpse of the interior of the planet Mars.	PSRD-InsideMars.pdf
22 AUG 97	Testing the Evidence for Life on Mars: NASA and NSF Fund New Studies of Martian Meteorite by G. Jeffrey Taylor Newly awarded grants will fund 23 projects to further analyze martian meteorite ALH84001 and the details that led to last year's announcement of possible ancient martian life.	PSRD-NewAwards.pdf
8 JULY 97	Moving Stars and Shifting Sands of Presolar History by Donald D. Clayton Meteorites contain tiny grains of minerals cast off from ancient stars before the birth of our own Solar System. These grains tell a story of element formation, motions inside stars, and migration of stars in the Galaxy.	PSRD-Stardust.pdf
22 MAY 97	Shocked Carbonates may Spell N-o L-i-f-e in Martian Meteorite ALH84001 by Edward R. D. Scott Evidence for redistribution of carbonates by shock casts doubt on fossil life in martian meteorite.	PSRD-ShockedCarb.pdf
22 MAY 97	Low-temperature Origin of Carbonates Consistent with Life in ALH84001 by G. Jeffrey Taylor Evidence from magnetism and isotopes consistent with life in martian meteorite.	PSRD-LowTempCarb.pdf
31 MAR 97	Life on Mars--The Debate Continues by G. Jeffrey Taylor Scientists continue their search for answers to the question of fossil life in a martian meteorite. Have we found evidence for life, nonbiologic processes or contamination? The great debate is far from over.	PSRD-LifeonMarsUpdate.pdf
31 MAR 97	Not Quite a Meeting of the Minds by G. Jeffrey Taylor The debate about life in martian meteorite ALH 84001 at the 28th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference was vigorous. Some investigators will turn out to be right, others wrong, but there will be no losers.	PSRD-LPSCreport.pdf
14 FEB 97	1997 Apparition of Comet Hale-Bopp by Karen J. Meech With its closest approach to Earth on March 22, 1997, comet Hale-Bopp gave a spectacular night time show. This article also covers the historical development of cometary science and the scientific importance of comets.	PSRD-Hale-Bopp.pdf
12 FEB 97	Explosive Volcanic Eruptions on the Moon by Catherine M. Weitz How did deposits of fine-grained volcanic beads form on the Moon? Could these deposits supply oxygen and rocket fuel to future lunar colonists?	PSRD-MoonVolcanics.pdf
23 JAN 97	Mercury Unveiled by G. Jeffrey Taylor New analysis of 1970's data returned by the Mariner 10 mission reveals the nature of the surface of Mercury.	PSRD-MercuryUnveiled.pdf
21 DEC 96	Ice on the Bone Dry Moon by Paul D. Spudis Deposits of ice in the permanently dark regions near the south pole of the Moon could bootstrap a self-sustaining lunar colony.	PSRD-IceonMoon.pdf
21 DEC 96	Life Underground by G. Jeffrey Taylor Some bacteria live on nothing but rock and water, extracting energy from chemical reactions rather than from sunlight.	PSRD-LifeUnderground.pdf
21 DEC 96	Meteorites from Mars, Rocks from Canada by Rachel C. Friedman There is more to Mars rocks than suspected fossils. Scientists are using ancient lava flows in eastern Ontario to understand the formation of a group of meteorites from Mars.	PSRD-Nakhlites.pdf
18 OCT 96	Life on Mars? by G. Jeffrey Taylor A group of scientists, headed by Dr. David McKay of Johnson Space Center, have made a case for ancient life on Mars based on features in a meteorite found in Antarctica. Do we indeed have evidence of life on Mars?	PSRD-LifeonMars.pdf
18 OCT 96	Rules for Identifying Ancient Life by G. Jeffrey Taylor Scientists seeking the oldest fossils on Earth have developed rules for establishing that they have found fossils and that the fossils formed in place.	PSRD-IDRules.pdf


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