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

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 the sample most enriched in light Mg isotopes, and the ²⁵Mg/²⁴Mg value of the fluid had shifted lower by ~0.38‰ than th

SUBMITTER: Yoshimura T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11377773 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature