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Hafner, S. S.

Publications and source records attributed to Hafner, S. S..

Distinct cooling histories of Apollo 14 basalts.

The subsolidus cooling history of basaltic rocks can be deduced from the distribution of divalent Mg and Fe ions over the two nonequivalent positions M1 and M2 in pyroxene. The ion exchange reaction between M1 and M2 is generally characterized by rapid kinetics. It is found that the normal cooling process of basalt 14053 was interrupted at a temperature below 840 C and that the rock was then quenched extremely rapidly.

Gray, N.↗

Temperature-dependent Mg, Fe distribution in a lunar olivine.

The nuclear hyperfine doublets of Fe-57 at the two nonequivalent octahedrally coordinated positions M1 and M2 in an olivine from lunar basalt 12018 have been analyzed in the temperature range between 250 and 450 C. The Mg(2+), Fe(2+) is somewhat ordered, the Fe(2+) occupancy being greater at one of the two M positions by approximately 20%. After heating at 1155 C for seven days, the distribution was almost completely disordered. Studies of natural and heated olivines from terrestrial rocks show that the Mg(2+), Fe(2+) exchange reaction in olivines is considerably more sluggish than in chain silicates. Generally no change in site occupancy can be observed after heating at temperatures of approximately 900 C over several days. The observed degree of ordering in the lunar olivine is indicative of slow cooling during crystallization.

Virgo, D.↗

Distinct subsolidus cooling histories of Apollo 14 basalts.

Study of the distribution of magnesium and ferrous iron over the M1 and M2 positions in pyroxenes from the basaltic rocks 14053 and 14310, aimed at an analysis of the subsolidus cooling history. The results obtained suggest that the subsolidus cooling of the basalt 14310 occurred at a depth of several meters in a coherent body of appreciable size. As for the 14053, the hot debris of which it was a part were deposited after the projection from the Imbrium basin; some smaller fragments, including 14503, cooled very rapidly in the cold Fra Mauro regolith by conduction.

Schurmann, K.↗

Cation disorder in shocked orthopyroxene.

The study of cation distributions over nonequivalent lattice sites in minerals may reveal information on the history of temperature and pressure in rocks. Chemically homogeneous orthopyroxene specimens were shocked under well-controlled conditions in the laboratory in order to provide a basis for the interpretation of more complex natural materials. As a result of the investigation it is concluded that the distribution of magnesium and iron over the M1 and M2 positions in Bamle enstatite shocked at 1 megabar is highly disordered. It corresponds to an equilibrium distribution of at least 1000 C.

Dundon, R. W.↗

Oxidation state of iron in plagioclase from lunar basalts.

Determination of the oxidation state of iron in the plagioclase from the coarse-grained basalts 10044 and 12021, using Mossbauer spectroscopy. The location of iron in the crystal structure was also investigated. The spectra show that iron is in the high-spin ferrous state, and they located at least two distinct positions with different coordination numbers. Some excess resonant absorption is probably due to Fe(3+), although the Fe(3+) doublet could not be positively resolved.

Hafner, S. S.↗

High voltage electron microscopy and electron diffraction of pyroxenes in type B lunar samples from Apollo 11

Lunar pyroxene 10044 specimens cleaved and sectioned by diamond knife ultramicrotomy were examined by standard (75 to 100 kV) and high voltage (200 kV) electron microscopy and diffraction. Salient findings based on evaluation of 2000 plates show uniform 300 to 600 A-wide bands, probably corresponding to single crystal domains, with lattice spacings of 2. A High resolution bright and dark field images of iron-rich and magnesium-rich crystals were compared with corresponding electron diffraction patterns. Possible relations of observed structures to magnetic domains were considered.

Fernandez-Moran, H.↗