Other
Scientific paper
May 2001
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2001agusm...p21a06e&link_type=abstract
American Geophysical Union, Spring Meeting 2001, abstract #P21A-06 INVITED
Other
5410 Composition, 5455 Origin And Evolution, 5480 Volcanism (8450), 5494 Instruments And Techniques
Scientific paper
The TiO2 content in mare basalt soils primarily reflects the abundance of the mineral ilmenite (FeTiO3), and has been used to classify the mare basalts sampled at the landing sites. Titanium is an important elemental indicator in mare basalt petrogenesis, reflecting the composition and state of the partial melt at depth. Consequently it is important to establish the global abundance of titanium in mare basalt soils. Neutron spectrometer data can be used to do this: iron and titanium have large cross sections for thermal neutron absorption compared to other major elements in lunar minerals. The thermal neutron leakage flux of Fe- and Ti-rich mare soils is nearly a factor of three smaller than that of highlands soils. For this reason, Lunar Prospector neutron spectrometer measurements can provide constraints on TiO2 abundance on the lunar surface. Sophisticated Monte Carlo simulations of neutron transport and capture reveal that there is a linear relationship between the epithermal-to-thermal neutron flux ratio and the macroscopic absorption cross section, Σ a. Σ a is a measure of a material's ability to absorb thermal neutrons, in effect a weighted sum of the absorption contributions due to all elements. Using FeO and thorium abundance estimates from Lunar Prospector gamma ray spectrometer we can estimate the contributions of all major elements except titanium to Σ a, as well as the additional absorbing effects of the rare earth elements gadolinium and samarium. Any additional absorption must be due to the presence of titanium. We can thus derive abundance estimates of TiO2 and compare to other estimates derived spectroscopically. Our results show a significantly lower abundance of TiO2 than has been estimated using spectral reflectance techniques with Clementine data. In particular, we find much lower abundances in M. Crisium, M. Fecunditatis, and within M. Serenitatis and northern M. Nubium.
Barraclough Bruce L.
Binder Alan B.
Blewett Dave T.
Elphic Richard C.
Feldman William C.
No associations
LandOfFree
Lunar Prospector Neutron Measurements and TiO2 in Mare Basalt Soils does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.
If you have personal experience with Lunar Prospector Neutron Measurements and TiO2 in Mare Basalt Soils, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Lunar Prospector Neutron Measurements and TiO2 in Mare Basalt Soils will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-1271899