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The I-Pu-Xe age of the MoonThe Rb-Sr analyses of some lunar samples which indicate that the Moon is close to the age of primitive meteorites are only reliable to within about 100 m.y. A potentially more precise chronometer is the I-Pu-Xe system. I129 has a 17 m.y. halflife and decays to Xe129; Pu244, with an 82 m.y. halflife, produces Xe131 to Xe136 in fission. The I129/Pu244 ratio has a halflife of 21 m.y. Xenon retention for the Earth could have begun as late as the event that gave birth to the Moon. For the Moon, it is hard to imagine that xenon retention could have begun before re-accretion of the fissioned (and initially dispersed?) material, particularly if that material got hot enough to account for the depletion of the volatile elements. Thus, if fission model are correct, xenon retention in the Earth certainly began no later than in the Moon, and possibly began earlier. Therefore, the I-Pu-Xe system is only marginally consistent with a fission origin. If further study confirms that the I/U ratio of the Moon is .01 or less, or if gas-rich lunar highland breccias with higher ratios of I129 to Pu244 are found, it would be difficult to explain the results in an earth-fission model of lunar origin.
Document ID
19850005420
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Swindle, T. D.
(Washington Univ. Saint Louis, MO, United States)
Caffee, M. W.
(Washington Univ. Saint Louis, MO, United States)
Hohenberg, C. M.
(Washington Univ. Saint Louis, MO, United States)
Date Acquired
August 12, 2013
Publication Date
January 1, 1984
Publication Information
Publication: Lunar Planetary Inst. Conf. on the Origin of the Moon
Subject Category
Lunar And Planetary Exploration
Accession Number
85N13729
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.

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