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Nickel isotopic evidence for late-stage accretion of Mercury-like differentiated planetary embryos.


ABSTRACT: Earth's habitability is closely tied to its late-stage accretion, during which impactors delivered the majority of life-essential volatiles. However, the nature of these final building blocks remains poorly constrained. Nickel (Ni) can be a useful tracer in characterizing this accretion as most Ni in the bulk silicate Earth (BSE) comes from the late-stage impactors. Here, we apply Ni stable isotope analysis to a large number of meteorites and terrestrial rocks, and find that the BSE has a lighter Ni isotopic composition compared to chondrites. Using first-principles calculations based on density functional theory, we show that core-mantle differentiation cannot produce the observed light Ni isotopic composition of the BSE. Rather, the sub-chondritic Ni isotopic signature was established during Earth's late-stage accretion, probably through the Moon-forming giant impact. We propose that a highly reduced sulfide-rich, Mercury-like body, whose mantle is characterized by light Ni isotopic composition, collided with and merged into the proto-Earth during the Moon-forming giant impact, producing the sub-chondritic Ni isotopic signature of the BSE, while delivering sulfur and probably other volatiles to the Earth.

SUBMITTER: Wang SJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7803775 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Nickel isotopic evidence for late-stage accretion of Mercury-like differentiated planetary embryos.

Wang Shui-Jiong SJ   Wang Wenzhong W   Zhu Jian-Ming JM   Wu Zhongqing Z   Liu Jingao J   Han Guilin G   Teng Fang-Zhen FZ   Huang Shichun S   Wu Hongjie H   Wang Yujian Y   Wu Guangliang G   Li Weihan W  

Nature communications 20210112 1


Earth's habitability is closely tied to its late-stage accretion, during which impactors delivered the majority of life-essential volatiles. However, the nature of these final building blocks remains poorly constrained. Nickel (Ni) can be a useful tracer in characterizing this accretion as most Ni in the bulk silicate Earth (BSE) comes from the late-stage impactors. Here, we apply Ni stable isotope analysis to a large number of meteorites and terrestrial rocks, and find that the BSE has a lighte  ...[more]

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