Ruthenium isotope vestige of Earth's pre-late-veneer mantle preserved in Archaean rocks.

ABSTRACT: The accretion of volatile-rich material from the outer Solar System represents a crucial prerequisite for Earth to develop oceans and become a habitable planet^1-4. However, the timing of this accretion remains controversial^5-8. It has been proposed that volatile elements were added to Earth by the late accretion of a late veneer consisting of carbonaceous-chondrite-like material after core formation had ceased^6,9,10. This view could not be reconciled with the ruthenium (Ru) isotope composition of carbonaceous chondrites^5,11, which is distinct from that of the modern mantle¹², or of any known meteorite group⁵. As a possible solution, Earth's pre-late-veneer mantle could already have contained a fraction of Ru that was not ful

SUBMITTER: Fischer-Godde M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7212018 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature