Molten I-type cosmic spherules formed by heating, oxidation and melting of extraterrestrial Fe,Ni metal alloys. The entire oxygen in these spherules sources from the atmosphere. Therefore, I-type cosmic spherules are suitable tracers for the isotopic composition of the upper atmosphere at altitudes between 80 and 115 km. Here we present data on I-type cosmic spherules collected in Antarctica. Their composition is compared with the composition of tropospheric O. Our data suggest that the Earth's atmospheric O is isotopically homogenous up to the thermosphere. This makes fossil I-type micrometeorites ideal proxies for ancient atmospheric CO levels.
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| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5461487 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ncomms15702 | DOI Listing |
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