Note to users. If you're seeing this message, it means that your browser cannot find this page's style/presentation instructions -- or possibly that you are using a browser that does not support current Web standards. Find out more about why this message is appearing, and what you can do to make your experience of our site the best it can be.

Science 24 September 1999:
Vol. 285. no. 5436, pp. 2115 - 2118
DOI: 10.1126/science.285.5436.2115
Prev | Table of Contents | Next

Reports

Primordial Noble Gases from Earth's Mantle: Identification of a Primitive Volatile Component

M. W. Caffee, 1 G. B. Hudson, 1 C. Velsko, 1 G. R. Huss, 2 E. C. Alexander Jr., 3 A. R. Chivas 4

Carbon dioxide well gases in Colorado, New Mexico, and South Australia show excesses of 124-128Xe correlated with 129I-derived 129Xe and 20Ne/22Ne ratios that are higher than the atmospheric 20Ne/22Ne ratio. The xenon isotopic data indicate the presence of a solarlike component deep within Earth. The presence of this component in crustal and upper mantle reservoirs may be explained by a steady-state transport of noble gases from the lower mantle, which still retains much of its juvenile volatile inventory. These measurements also indicate that the mantle source of these noble gases in the carbon dioxide well gases cannot be the source of Earth's present atmosphere. The variations observed in 129Xe/130Xe between solar wind xenon, Earth's atmosphere, and mantle samples may be generated by variations of iodine/xenon in terrestrial reservoirs, as opposed to rapid early degassing.

1 Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Post Office Box 808, Livermore, CA 94550, USA.
2 Department of Geology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287, USA.
3 Department of Geology and Geophysics, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA.
4 School of Geosciences, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia.

Read the Full Text


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
What CO2 well gases tell us about the origin of noble gases in the mantle and their relationship to the atmosphere.
C. J Ballentine and G. Holland (2008)
Phil Trans R Soc A 366, 4183-4203
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Origin of Noble Gases in the Terrestrial Planets.
R. O. Pepin and D. Porcelli (2002)
Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry 47, 191-246
   Full Text »    PDF »
Noble Gas Isotope Geochemistry of Mid-Ocean Ridge and Ocean Island Basalts: Characterization of Mantle Source Reservoirs.
D. W. Graham (2002)
Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry 47, 247-317
   Full Text »    PDF »
Models for Distribution of Terrestrial Noble Gases and Evolution of the Atmosphere.
D. Porcelli and C. J. Ballentine (2002)
Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry 47, 411-480
   Full Text »    PDF »
Formation and early evolution of the atmosphere.
B. Marty and N. Dauphas (2002)
Geological Society, London, Special Publications 199, 213-229
   Abstract »    PDF »


To Advertise     Find Products

Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)