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The Flux of Lunar Meteorites onto the Earth

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Abstract

Numerous new finds of lunar meteorites in Oman allow detailed constraints to be obtained on the intensity of the transfer of lunar matter to the Earth. Our estimates show that the annual flux of lunar meteorites in the mass interval from 10 to 1000 g to the entire Earth's surface should not be less than several tenths of a kilogram and is more likely equal to tens or even a few hundred kilograms, i.e., a few percent of the total meteorite flux. This corresponds to several hundred or few thousand falls of lunar meteorites on all of Earth per year. Even small impact events, which produce smaller than craters on the Moon smaller than 10 km in diameter, are capable of transferring lunar matter to the Earth. In this case, the Earth may capture between 10 to 100% of the mass of high-velocity crater ejecta leaving the Moon. Our estimates for the lunar flux imply rather optimistic prospects for the discovery of new lunar meteorites and, consequently, for the analyses of the lunar crust composition. However, the meteorite-driven flux of lunar matter did not play any significant role in the formation of the material composition of the Earth's crust, even during the stage of intense meteorite bombardment.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Vernadsky Institute of Geochemistry and Analytical Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, ul. Kosygina 19, Moscow, 119991, Russia

    M. A. Nazarov, D. D. Badyukov, K. A. Lorents & S. I. Demidova

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  1. M. A. Nazarov
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  2. D. D. Badyukov
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  3. K. A. Lorents
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  4. S. I. Demidova
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Nazarov, M.A., Badyukov, D.D., Lorents, K.A. et al. The Flux of Lunar Meteorites onto the Earth. Solar System Research 38, 49–58 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1023/B:SOLS.0000015155.90844.ae

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/B:SOLS.0000015155.90844.ae

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