Publication: Advances in Polar Science (APS). Antarctic Research. Vol. 7, No. 1, 41~49, June 1996
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Author: Wang Daode and Chen Yongheng
CNARC member: Polar Research Institute of China (PRIC)
Abstract: The concentrations of 13 elements in the metal of 52 Antarctic irons have been reported and these irons have been classified based on the structures and their Ga, Ge, Ni, Ir and other trace elemental contents. The 52 iron meteorites assigned to chemical group consist of 16 IAB, 12 of IIAB, 1 of IIE, 3 of IIIAB, 1 of IIICD, 1 of IVA and 18 of ungrouped irons. The IAB, IIICD and IIE iron meteorite groups are considered to be of nonmagmatic origin. Nonmagmatic IAB, IIICD and IIE irons formed as individual pools of a chondritic body. The other groups, IIAB, IIIAB and IVA show the evidences of having originated by fractional crystallization of a metallic magma. The slope on element-Ni trends in the magmatic are generally higher than in the nonmagmatic groups. Most interesting are the high abundance of ungrouped and IAB (47.2% and 27.8%, respectively) and low abundance of IIIAB (5.8%). Antarctic irons of the group abundances can be distinguished from non-Antarctic irons, which provide the information about previously unsampled parent planets, mass, shock and collision, as well as nebula regions.
Keywords: Antarctica, Antarctic meteorites, iron meteorites, classification of iron meteorites
