Breunnerite grain and magnesium isotope chemistry reveal cation partitioning during aqueous alteration of asteroid Ryugu

YURIMOTO Hisayoshi

Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences

Sep. 06, 2024

Joint press release (in Japanese) by Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology, Kyushu University, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, Hokkaido University, HORIBA TECHNO SERVICE, Co., Ltd., Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tohoku University, Kyoto University, Nagoya University, and School of Science, The University of Tokyo

Abstract
Returned samples from the carbonaceous asteroid (162173) Ryugu provide pristine information on the original aqueous alteration history of the Solar System. Secondary precipitates, such as carbonates and phyllosilicates, reveal elemental partitioning of the major component ions linked to the primordial brine composition of the asteroid. Here, we report on the elemental partitioning and Mg isotopic composition (²⁵Mg/²⁴Mg) of breunnerite [(Mg, Fe, Mn)CO₃] from the Ryugu C0002 sample and the A0106 and C0107 aggregates by sequential leaching extraction of salts, exchangeable ions, carbonates, and silicates. Breunnerite was ….

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Article Information:
Breunnerite grain and magnesium isotope chemistry reveal cation partitioning during aqueous alteration of asteroid Ryugu.
Yoshimura, T., Araoka, D., Naraoka, H. et al.
Nature Communications 15, 6809 (2024).
DOI：10.1038/s41467-024-50814-y