Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Excess lead in "rusty rock" 66095 and implications for an early lunar differentiation

January 1, 1973

Apollo 16 breccia 66095 contains a remarkably high amount of lead (15 part's per million), 85 percent of which is not supported by uranium and thorium in the rock. An acid leach experiment coupled with separate analyses of the whole rock and mineral fractions for uranium, thorium, and lead indicate that the excess lead has a lunar source and was apparently introduced about 4.0 X 109 years ago. The data also suggest that a major lunar crustal differentiation occurred about 4.47 X 109 years ago.

Publication Year 1973
Title Excess lead in "rusty rock" 66095 and implications for an early lunar differentiation
Authors P.D. Nunes, M. Tatsumoto
Publication Type Article
Publication Subtype Journal Article
Series Title Science
Index ID 70011096
Record Source USGS Publications Warehouse