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Science 26 August 1966:
Vol. 153. no. 3739, pp. 981 - 984
DOI: 10.1126/science.153.3739.981
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Articles

Implantation in Interplanetary Dust of Rare-Gas Ions from Solar Flares

David Tilles 1

1 Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and Harvard College Observatory, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138

Measurements of excess Ar36 + Ar38 ( released mainly at 1200°C) in magnetic concentrates of Pacific sediments and in a dense concentrate of Greenland dust agree within an order of magnitude with expected concentrations implanted by solar-flare ion streams of energy less than 10 Mev per atomic-mass unit. The agreement implies that more than 10 percent of each concentrate may be extraterrestrial, depending on size distribution and flare spectra. Rare-gas measurements on fine-grained dust can provide data on: solar-flare "paleo-ion" fluxes, energy spectra, and isotopic abundances; identification, mineralogy, and chemistry of interplanetary dust; influx rates to Earth and sedimentation rates of oceanic cores; and lunar-surface residence and mixing times.


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Influx Measurements of Extraterrestrial Material: Sea sediments, polar ice, air, and space are searched for amount and character of interplanetary debris.
D. W. Parkin, D. W. Parkin, and D. Tilles (1968)
Science 159, 936-946
   PDF »
Aluminum-26 and Beryllium-10 in Greenland Ice.
R. McCorkell, R. McCorkell, E. L. Fireman, and C. C. Langway Jr. (1967)
Science 158, 1690-1692
   Abstract »    PDF »
Zodiacal Dust and Deep-Sea Sediments.
S. F. Singer (1967)
Science 156, 1080-1083
   Abstract »    PDF »


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