Ancient meteorite provides hints about Earth’s nitrogen

Ars Technica : Nitrogen composes about 78% of Earth’s atmosphere and is the most common pure element on the planet. However, the nitrogen on Earth does not occur in the same isotope fractions as the nitrogen found in the Sun or in the tails of comets. A new analysis of an ancient meteorite may provide some clues as to where Earth’s nitrogen came from. Transmission electron microscopy and secondary ion mass spectrometry reveal that the meteorite contains the mineral carlsbergite. The mineral’s characteristics suggest it was formed in the presence of ammonia (NH₄), which likely came from ice in the Sun’s protoplanetary disk. That ice could later have been part of the material that accreted to form Earth. It is possible that the different isotope ratios of nitrogen found in the Sun and in comets blended in such a way as to produce the nitrogen mix now present on Earth.