11/18/2024
By Amanda Vozzo
Nicolle Zellner, Physics Chair of Albion College, will give a talk on “Lunar Impact Glasses: Big Science from Small Samples” on Wednesday, Nov. 20.
Time: 4 to 5 p.m.
Location: Ball Hall 214
Abstract: Lunar impact glasses, pieces of melted lunar regolith created by impacts, offer information about the Moon’s impact history and evolution in general. These samples possess the composition of the target material and can be dated by the 40Ar/39Ar method in order to determine their formation ages. Understanding the ages of impact glasses, along with their compositions, allows us to piece together information about the impact rate in the inner Solar System and its effect on Earth. Important topics to address include determining the form of the large-impact distribution with respect to time (e.g., smooth decline versus cataclysmic spike); whether there is periodicity in Earth-Moon cratering history; how impacts affect the distribution of regolith materials; the rate of delivery of biomolecules; and the applicability of the lunar record to other planets. This talk will provide a summary of the science supported by investigations of lunar impact glasses and propose new ideas that have yet to be explored.
Bio: Nicolle Zellner, Ph.D., is an American astronomer, planetary scientist, and astrobiologist whose research concerns impact events on the Moon, especially during the Late Heavy Bombardment, the evidence for these impacts left in lunar glass, and the effects of impacts on the development of life on Earth. She received her Ph.D. in Multidisciplinary Science from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 2001, where she specialized in the studies of the origins of life. In addition to her research, she is known for her extensive efforts in the public outreach of space science. She received the Carl Sagan Medal for Excellence in Public Communication in 2022. She is a professor of Physics and Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Trustees’ Professor in the Sciences, and Chair of Physics, at Albion College in Michigan.