Investigating aqueous and thermal alteration in carbonaceous chondrite meteorites

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The aim of this project is to investigate the mineralogical, textural and chemical properties of the thermally altered CI, CM and CR chondrites. The project has the potential to use a wide range of analytical techniques including optical and electron microscopes (SEM/EMPA), computed tomography (CT), and infrared and Raman spectroscopy. Isotopic measurements will be used to infer the timing of alteration, and dynamic heating experiments will constrain the mineralogical and chemical changes associated with thermal metamorphism. The results of the project will provide new insights into the evolution of asteroids and a framework for understanding samples returned from asteroids Bennu and Ryugu.This is a multi-disciplinary project utilising the world-class meteorite collection and analytical facilities available to the Planetary Materials Group at the Natural History Musuem, London, the Isotope Geochemistry and Cosmochemistry Group at the University of Manchester, and the Planetary and Space Science Group at the Open University.