Compositional Trends in Rock-Forming Elements of Comet Halley Dust
Abstract
The VEGA 1 and 2 spacecraft flew by comet P/Halley in 1986 carrying, among other instruments, two mass spectrometers to measure the elemental composition of dust particles emitted from the comet. Most particles seem to be a mixture of silicates of variable magnesium-iron composition and organic matter. Comprehensive study of data and consideration of the mass of dust particles reveal cometary grains of "unusual" composition: magnesium-rich and iron-rich particles. Magnesium-rich particles are most likely magnesium carbonates, which could not have formed under conditions of equilibrium condensation but rather require formation by aqueous alteration. The composition of the iron-rich particles can also be related to secondary processes in the comet.
- Publication:
-
Science
- Pub Date:
- October 1992
- DOI:
- 10.1126/science.11538058
- Bibcode:
- 1992Sci...258..266F
- Keywords:
-
- Chemical Composition;
- Cosmic Dust;
- Halley'S Comet;
- Solar System Evolution;
- Iron;
- Magnesium;
- Organic Compounds;
- Rocks;
- Astrophysics