Elemental composition, mineralogy and orbital parameters of the Porangaba meteorite

• DOI: 10.1016/j.icarus.2020.113670
• Publication Date: 2020-01-28T20:40:51Z
• Authors: Martin Ferus; Lukáš Petera; Jakub Koukal; Libor Lenža; Barbora Drtinová; Jakub Haloda; Dalibor Matýsek; Adam Pastorek; Vojtěch Laitl; Renato Cassio Pol...; Marcelo Wagner Do...; Gabriel Gonçalves; Rodrigo del Olmo ...; Antonín Knížek; Petr Kubelík; Anna Křivková; Jiří Srba; Carlos Augusto di...; Milan Bouša; Tomáš Vaculovič; Svatopluk Civiš
• Keywords: Ordinary chondrite

Abstract The main objective of this study is to provide data on the bulk elemental composition, mineralogy and the possible origin of the Porangaba meteorite, whose fall was observed at 17:35 UT on 9 January 2015 on several sites of the state of Sao Paulo in Brazil. The surface of the meteorite was mapped by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and optical microscopy. The mineralogy and the bulk elemental composition of the meteorite were studied using Energy-Dispersive and Wavelength-Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS/WDS) together with Electron Back Scatter Diffraction (EBSD). The bulk elemental composition was also independently analysed by Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (AAS), Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS), Laser Ablation ICP MS (LA ICP-MS) and Calibration-Free Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (CF-LIBS). Based on the available visual camera records of the Porangaba meteorite fall, its orbit was tentatively calculated, and possible candidates for the source bodies in the Solar system were proposed. We also present a laboratory simulation of a Porangaba-like (L4 Ordinary Chondrite) meteor emission spectra. These can be used as benchmark spectra for the identification of meteor rock types through their comparison with meteor spectra recorded by high-speed video-cameras equipped with simple grating spectrographs.