Natural Alloys of the Cu–Ni System from Impactites of the Lonar Crater (India) and Lunar Regolith

Abstract

A comparative study of impact glasses from the Lonar crater, located on the Deccan basalt plateau, India, and impact glasses from lunar regolith delivered by the Soviet automatic stations (AS) Luna-16 and Luna-24 (Sea of Plenty and Sea of Crises) was carried out. Numerous natural alloys (Cu₃Ni₂, Ni₂Cu and Ni₃Cu) that were previously unknown in nature were discovered in the impactites of the Lonar crater and the regolith of the Moon. The discovery of such alloys expands the area of isomorphism in the Cu–Ni system. As a result of a comparison of impactites of the Earth and the Moon, similarities were discovered in the composition, size and morphology of particles of copper–nickel alloys, which may be an indicator of impact processes. One of the possible mechanisms for the formation of Ni–Cu particles was condensation from a gas–plasma cloud. A possible source of material for Cu–Ni alloys was both the impactor material and the target material.