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Science 3 February 1967:
Vol. 155. no. 3762, pp. 579 - 581
DOI: 10.1126/science.155.3762.579
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Articles

Primary Oxidation Variation and Distribution of Uranium and Thorium in a Lava Flow

N. D. Watkins 1, C. W. Holmes 2, and S. E. Haggerty 3

1 Department of Geology, Florida State University, Tallahassee
2 Colgate University, Hamilton, New York
3 Royal School of Mines, Imperial College of Science and Technology, London, S.W.7, England

An Icelandic basalt lava flow has a systematic oxidation variation, formed during the initial cooling, with a resultant maximum oxidation just below the center of the lava. The ratio of thorium to uranium shows a clear dependence on this primary oxidation variation. Between-lava comparisons of thorium and uranium may be critically dependent on the position of the samples in each lava.

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