Journal
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Volume 117, Issue 49, Pages 30973-30979Publisher
NATL ACAD SCIENCES
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2016326117
Keywords
Mars; meteorites; zircon; geodynamics
Categories
Funding
- Carlsberg Foundation [CF18_ 1105]
- Danish National Research Foundation [DNRF97]
- European Research Council (ERC) [833275-DEEPTIME]
- Australian Research Council [DP190103849]
- State Key Laboratory for Geological Processes and Mineral Resources, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan [GPMR201903]
- DOE Office of Science [DE-AC02-06CH11357]
- NERC [bgs06001] Funding Source: UKRI
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Combining U-Pb ages with Lu-Hf data in zircon provides insights into the magmatic history of rocky planets. The Northwest Africa (NWA) 7034/7533 meteorites are samples of the southern highlands of Mars containing zircon with ages as old as 4476.3 +/- 0.9 Ma, interpreted to reflect reworking of the primordial Martian crust by impacts. We extracted a statistically significant zircon population (n = 57) from NWA 7533 that defines a temporal record spanning 4.2 Gyr. Ancient zircons record ages from 4485.5 +/- 2.2 Ma to 4331.0 +/- 1.4 Ma, defining a bimodal distribution with groupings at 4474 +/- 10 Ma and 4442 +/- 17 Ma. We interpret these to represent intense bombardment episodes at the planet's surface, possibly triggered by the early migration of gas giant planets. The unradiogenic initial Hf-isotope composition of these zircons establishes that Mars's igneous activity prior to similar to 4.3 Ga was limited to impact-related reworking of a chemically enriched, primordial crust. A group of younger detrital zircons record ages from 1548.0 +/- 8.8 Ma to 299.5 +/- 0.6 Ma. The only plausible sources for these grains are the temporally associated Elysium and Tharsis volcanic provinces that are the expressions of deep-seated mantle plumes. The chondritic-like Hf-isotope compositions of these zircons require the existence of a primitive and convecting mantle reservoir, indicating that Mars has been in a stagnant-lid tectonic regime for most of its history. Our results imply that zircon is ubiquitous on the Martian surface, providing a faithful record of the planet's magmatic history.
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