Understanding the Geologic Evolution of the Solar System through Meteorites and other Planetary Samples

通过陨石和其他行星样本了解太阳系的地质演化

• 批准号: RGPIN-2018-04902
• 负责人: Herd, Christopher
• 金额: $ 6.27万
• 依托单位: University of Alberta
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2022
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2022-01-01 至 2023-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=750900
• 关键词: Understanding; Geologic; Evolution; Solar; System

Meteorites are samples of places to which we cannot readily go including the Moon, Mars and asteroids; their study enables us to explore the Solar System in time and space. Some meteorites preserve a record of the very first few million years of our Solar System's history, while others capture eruptions of lava on the surface of Mars a mere 200 million years ago. The detailed study of these samples provides information about their parent planets which can only be matched by similar studies on samples retrieved by space missions. In the case of meteorites from Mars, the meteorites provide information which complements and extends what is known from landed and orbiting spacecraft that are exploring Mars today.The conditions at the surface of the Earth today are detrimental to meteorite specimens - fundamentally because the geologic evolution of the Earth has differed so vastly from those of the meteorites' parent planets. For this reason, meteorites can quickly undergo contamination, modification and alteration after their fall to Earth; the best samples for research are those meteorites that are rapidly retrieved after their fall, and which have been carefully curated and handled so that they are preserved against modification or alteration.My research program involves applying state-of-the-art tools to analyze meteorites, and a world-class facility to curate meteorites, in order to place constraints on the origin and geologic evolution of our Solar System. Two main objectives include determining the relationship between carbonaceous chondrite asteroids and comets, and narrowing down the possible source igneous units of the Martian meteorites. In addition, I will establish the Western Canadian arm of a Global Fireball Observatory (GFO), which will allow for the rapid detection and retrieval of freshly fallen meteorites. Coupled with the unique Subzero Curation Facility for meteorites, this will enable a complete, end-to-end approach to meteorite falls in western Canada, maximizing the science from these samples and effectively converting them into sample return missions. Lessons learned from the meteorites in the University of Alberta Collection, as well as meteorites recovered through the GFO, will inform future efforts by space agencies to return samples from asteroids, Mars and comets.

陨石是我们无法轻易到达的地方的样本，包括月球、火星和小行星；他们的研究使我们能够在时间和空间上探索太阳系。一些陨石保存了太阳系历史最初几百万年的记录，而另一些陨石则记录了仅仅 2 亿年前火星表面熔岩的喷发。对这些样本的详细研究提供了有关其母行星的信息，这些信息只能与对太空任务检索的样本的类似研究相匹配。就来自火星的陨石而言，陨石提供的信息补充和扩展了当今探索火星的着陆和轨道航天器的已知信息。当今地球表面的条件对陨石标本不利 - 根本上是因为地质演化地球的情况与陨石母行星的情况有很大不同。因此，陨石坠落到地球后会很快受到污染、改造和改变；最好的研究样本是那些坠落后迅速回收的陨石，这些陨石经过精心策划和处理，以防止被修改或改变。我的研究计划包括应用最先进的工具来分析陨石，以及世界一流的陨石处理设施，以限制太阳系的起源和地质演化。两个主要目标包括确定碳质球粒陨石小行星和彗星之间的关系，以及缩小火星陨石可能的火成岩来源范围。此外，我将建立全球火球观测站（GFO）的加拿大西部分支机构，以便快速探测和检索新落下的陨石。再加上独特的零下陨石管理设施，这将为加拿大西部的陨石坠落提供完整的、端到端的方法，最大限度地利用这些样本的科学知识，并有效地将它们转化为样本返回任务。从阿尔伯塔大学收藏的陨石以及通过 GFO 回收的陨石中汲取的经验教训将为航天机构未来从小行星、火星和彗星返回样本的努力提供信息。