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On Mercury magnetic anomalies generated by meteorites

2021-02-26T15:13:24.012Z


Also on Mercury, as already observed on the Moon, the impacts of meteorites can be the cause of the anomalies of the magnetic field of the crust recorded in correspondence with some craters (ANSA)


Even on Mercury, as already observed on the Moon, meteorite impacts can be the cause of the anomalies of the magnetic field of the crust recorded in correspondence with some craters.

This is demonstrated by a study published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters by a group of experts led by Valentina Galluzzi of the National Institute of Astrophysics (INAF).

The researchers analyzed Mercury's crustal magnetic field by focusing on two anomalies identified in correspondence with two recently formed craters: the Stieglitz crater (90 kilometers in diameter with a central peak located in the Borealis Planitia region) and the Rustaveli crater (a 'basin' 210 kilometers with a central ring peak located in the northern hemisphere of the planet).

The peculiarity of these magnetic anomalies is that, although they correspond to the craters, they are not perfectly centered on them, but are asymmetrical.

“From a geological point of view, we wanted to verify the possibility that these anomalies had been generated by ferromagnetic elements carried by impactors,” says Galluzzi.

“It was possible through an analysis of the impact dynamics that helps us understand what the direction, direction and angle of the meteorite may have been”.

The analysis by Stieglitz and Rustaveli allowed the researchers to identify a series of stagnations of molten material.

"This molten material - continues the researcher - creates the only morphological asymmetry clearly evident in the two craters and the asymmetrical magnetic anomalies are located off-center in exactly the same direction".

The relationship between the angle of impact and the decentralization of the anomaly therefore indicates that even on Mercury “the impacts are one of the causes of the presence of these localized anomalies”, explains Galluzzi.

“The fusion of the impactor composed of magnetic elements and its consequent cooling process allow to record the magnetic field and to record the anomaly permanently in the rock.

This also allows us to affirm that Mercury's magnetic dynamo was also active at the time of these impacts, less than 1.7 billion years ago ”.

Source: ansa

All tech articles on 2021-02-26

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