Planetesimal Formation and Early Evolution: Constraints from in Situ Isotope Analyses
When
Where
Dr. Myriam Telus
Assistant Professor
University of California Santa Cruz
Chondrites provide a fossil record of the nebular components that went into forming planetesimals, or planetary building blocks. These sedimentary rocks show evidence for thermal and/or fluid alteration that occurred within a few million years of the solar system’s formation. I will give an overview on what we know about chondrite parent bodies and then discuss two current projects aimed at better understanding their formation and early evolution: 1) C and O isotopes of carbonates in CM chondrites as a tracer of fluid alteration of planetesimals and 2) in situ U-Pb isotope analyses of phosphates in H chondrites to better constrain the thermal history of the parent body.
Host: Dr. Tom Zega