K. Kvenvolden | Geology Reports

USGS2000

Comparisons of in situ and core gas measurements in ODP Leg 164 bore holes

During Ocean Drilling Program Leg 164, an unprecedented effort was made to determine the amounts of gas and gas hydrate in the sediments from Sites 994, 995, and 997. For the first time in the history of academic drilling, a pressure core sampler (PCS) worked well enough to generate an independent stratigraphy of in situ gas concentrations and compositions with depth. Here, gas concentrations and composition data produced by routine shipboard gas sampling techniques are compared with PCS data.

Conference Paper↗

USGS1970

Search for organic compounds in the lunar dust from the Sea of Tranquillity

A sample of lunar dust was examined for organic compounds. Carbon detected in concentrations of 157 micrograms per gram had a δ 13 C per mil (PDB) value of + 20. Treatment with hydrochloric acid yielded hydrocarbons of low molecular weight, suggesting the presence of carbides. The gas chromatogram of the acylated and esterified derivatives of the hydrolyzate was similar to that obtained for the Pueblito de Allende meteorite. There were no detectable amounts of extractable high-molecular-weight alkanes, aromatic hydrocarbons, isoprenoid hydrocarbons, normal alkanes, fatty acids, amino acids, sugars, or nucleic acid bases. Traces of porphyrins were found, perhaps arising from rocket exhaust materials.

Science↗