[meteorite-list] Is 3He a cometary marker?

From: E.P. Grondine <epgrondine_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Tue, 26 May 2009 20:04:17 -0700 (PDT)
Message-ID: <617476.76587.qm_at_web36906.mail.mud.yahoo.com>

Hi Doug, all -

Becker and Poreda's work with 3He in fullerenes at the PT boundary has never been duplicated in any lab. I don't know why this is, but I have a question: Is 3He a cometary marker?

This should be an easy question to answer, simply by grabbing dust samples during any meteor shower and analyzing them.

I also wonder about 3He capture when a Long Period Comet becomes a Short Period Comet. It would seem to me that if it were in the inner solar system long enough before accreting with another body (say 6 or 7 million years or so), then the comet would accumulate 3He from the Sun, particularly on close passes near to it.

E.P. Grondine
Man and Impact in the Americas


      
Received on Tue 26 May 2009 11:04:17 PM PDT