Differentiation of an Apollo 12 picrite magmaThe Apollo 12 olivine basalt suite shows a strong positive correlation of grain size with normative olivine content. This correlation is interpreted to mean that the suite of samples represents the basal portion of a cooling unit which differentiated by simple olivine settling. The grain size of plagioclase observed in the coarsest samples indicates the cooling unit may have been as much as 30 m thick. The amount of olivine concentration observed in the suite is quantitatively internally consistent with simple olivine settling in a magma body of this size which has the composition of the chill margin.
Document ID
19770051880
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Conference Proceedings
Authors
Walker, D. (Harvard Univ. Cambridge, MA, United States)
Hays, J. F. (Harvard University Cambridge, Mass., United States)
Longhi, J. (MIT Cambridge, Mass., United States)
Kirkpatrick, R. J. (California, University La Jolla, Calif., United States)