CM chondrites are aqueously altered rocks that contain ~9 wt.% H2O (indigenous water) [1] bound in phyllosilicates [2-4]; also present in the matrix are serpentinetochilinite intergrowths (PCP), pentlandite, and Ni-bearing pyrrhotite. The extent of alteration varies from meteorite to meteorite. Some CM chondrites contain well-delineated metallic-Fe-Ni-bearing, olivineand pyroxene-rich chondrule...

Introduction: For any near-Earth asteroid (NEA) on a possible collision course with Earth, a number of factors must be determined to evaluate the object’s potential hazard. One of these factors is the object’s mineralogy, which can be used to estimate the density and, therefore, the mass of the object. This work discusses how to determine the mineralogies of NEAs that have reflectance spectra s...

Introduction: We used visible-short wavelength infrared (VSWIR) imaging spectroscopy to survey the spectral diversity of the howardite, eucrite, and diogenite (HED) meteorite suite at 80-μm/pixel spatial scale. This group of meteorites is widely believed to originate from the asteroid Vesta. Our goal in this work is to contribute to understanding the petrologic diversity of the HED suite and th...

Data from the Observatoire pour la Minéralogie, l'Eau, les Glaces, et l'Activité (OMEGA) on the Mars Express spacecraft identify the distinct mafic, rock-forming minerals olivine, low-calcium pyroxene (LCP), and high-calcium pyroxene (HCP) on the surface of Mars. Olivine- and HCP-rich regions are found in deposits that span the age range of geologic units. However, LCP-rich regions are found on...

Introduction: The A16 (Apollo16) site in the lunar nearside highlands is 220 km from the nearest mare. Thus it is no surprise that mare basalt samples are uncommon at the site. Here, we present the petrography and geochemistry of 5 new mare basalt samples found at the A16 site. We also discuss possible provenances of all A16 mare basalt samples using high-resolution global data for the distribu...