Calcium-aluminum-rich inclusions (CAIs) were among the first solids in the solar system and were, similar to chondrules, created at very high temperatures. While in chondrules, trapped noble gases have recently been detected, the presence of trapped gases in CAIs is unclear but could have important implications for CAI formation and for early solar system evolution in general. To reassess this question, He, Ne, and Ar isotopes were measured in small, carefully separated and, thus, uncontaminated samples of CAIs from the CV3 chondrites Allende, Axtell, and Efremovka. The 20Ne/22Ne ratios of all CAIs studied here are <0.9, indicating the absence of trapped Ne as, e.g., Ne-HL, Ne-Q, or solar wind Ne. The 21Ne/22Ne ratios range from 0.86 to 0.72, with fine-grained, more altered CAIs usually showing lower values than coarse-grained, less altered CAIs. This is attributed to variable amounts of cosmogenic Ne produced from Na-rich alteration phases rather than to the presence of Ne-G or Ne-R (essentially pure 22Ne) in the samples. Our interpretation is supported by model calculations of the isotopic composition of cosmogenic Ne in minerals common in CAIs. The 36Ar/38Ar ratios are between 0.7 and 4.8, with fine-grained CAIs within one meteorite showing higher ratios than the coarse-grained ones. This agrees with higher concentrations of cosmogenic 36Ar produced by neutron capture on 35Cl with subsequent Beta- -decay in finer-grained, more altered, and thus, more Cl-rich CAIs than in coarser-grained, less altered ones. Although our data do not strictly contradict the presence of small amounts of Ne-G, Ne-R, or trapped Ar in the CAIs, our noble gas signatures are most simply explained by cosmogenic production, mainly from Na-, Ca-, and Cl-rich minerals.

We have conducted a detailed study of the Mn-Cr systematics of the angrite D'Orbigny. Here, we report Cr isotopic abundances and Mn/Cr ratios in olivine, pyroxene, glass, chromite, and bulk rock samples from D'Orbigny. 53Cr excesses in these samples correlate well with their respective Mn/Cr ratios and define an isochron with a slope that corresponds to an initial 53Mn/55Mn ratio = (3.24 +/- 0.04) x 10^(-6) and initial 53Cr/52Cr ratio of Sigma(53) = 0.30 +/- 0.03 at the time of isotopic closure. The 53Mn/55Mn ratio of the D'Orbigny bulk rock is more than two-fold the 53Mn/55Mn ratio of the angrites Lewis Cliff 86010 (LEW) and Angra dos Reis (ADOR) and implies an older Mn-Cr age of 4562.9 +/- 0.6 Ma for D'Orbigny relative to a Pb-Pb age of 4557.8 +/- 0.5 Ma for LEW and ADOR. One of the most unusual aspects of D'Orbigny is the presence of glass, a phase that has not been identified in any of the other angrites. The Mn-Cr data for glass and a pyroxene fraction found in druses indicate that they formed contemporaneously with the main phases of the meteorite. Since the Mn-Cr age of D'Orbigny is ~5 Ma years older than the angrites LEW and ADOR, D'Orbigny likely represents an earlier stage in the evolution of the angrite parent body.

We report here on an ion probe study of rare earth element (REE) geochemistry in the lherzolitic shergottite Grove Mountains (GRV) 99027. This meteorite shows almost identical mineralogy, petrology, and REE geochemistry to those of the lherzolitic shergottites Allan Hills (ALH) A77005, Lewis Cliff (LEW) 88516, and Yamato (Y-) 793605. REE concentrations in olivine, pyroxenes, maskelynite, merrillite, and melt glass are basically comparable to previous data obtained from ALH A77005, LEW 88516, and Y-793605. Olivine is the dominant phase in this meteorite. It is commonly enclosed by large (up to several mm) pigeonite oikocrysts. Non-poikilitic areas consist of larger olivine grains (~mm), pigeonite, augite, and maskelynite. Minor merrillite (up to 150 m in size) is widespread in non-poikilitic regions, occurring interstitially between olivine and pyroxene grains. It is the main REE carrier in GRV 99027 and has relatively higher REEs (200-1000 x CI) than that of other lherzolitic shergottites. A REE budget calculation for GRV 99027 yields a whole rock REE pattern very similar to that of other lherzolites. It is characterized by the distinctive light REE depletion and a smooth increase from light REEs to heavy REEs. REE microdistributions in GRV 99027 strongly support the idea that all lherzolitic shergottites formed by identical igneous processes, probably from the same magma chamber on Mars. Despite many similarities in mineralogy, petrography, and trace element geochemistry, subtle differences exist between GRV 99027 and other lherzolitic shergottites. GRV 99027 has relatively uniform mineral compositions (both major elements and REEs), implying that it suffered a higher degree of sub-solidus equilibration than the other three lherzolites. It is notable that GRV 99027 has experienced terrestrial weathering in the Antarctic environment, as its olivine and pyroxenes commonly display a light REE enrichment and a negative Ce anomaly. Caution needs to be taken in future chronological studies.

The Peerless structure is an ~6 km-diameter sub-surface anomaly located in Daniels County, northeastern Montana. The disruption of sedimentary rock in the structure lies between 2624 to 2818 m below the topographic surface. Seismic mapping shows a typical complex crater composed of a central uplift ~2 km across, which shows structural uplift of up to 90 m, an annular ring ~4 km across, and an outer rim ~6 km in diameter. The youngest disrupted rock unit is the upper Ordovician Red River formation, which indicates that the structure was formed about 430450 Ma ago.