Articles | Volume 7, issue 1
https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-7-45-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-7-45-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
25 Feb 2025
Research article |
| 25 Feb 2025
| 25 Feb 2025
The need for fission-track data transparency and sharing
State Key Laboratory of Earthquake Dynamics, Institute of Geology, China Earthquake Administration, Beijing 100029, China
Jackson School of Geosciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, USA
Ling Chung
School of Geography, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Melbourne, 3010 Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Richard A. Ketcham
Jackson School of Geosciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, USA
Andrew J. W. Gleadow
School of Geography, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Melbourne, 3010 Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
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We introduce a new model of how etching reveals damage tracks left by fissioning atoms, which accounts for variable along-track etching rates. This complete characterization explains many observations, including community difficulty in obtaining consistent track length measurements. It also provides a quantitative basis for optimizing etching procedures, discerning more about how radiation damage anneals, and ultimately deriving more reproducible fission-track ages and thermal histories.
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Acid leaching is commonly used to remove damaged portions of zircon crystals prior to U–Pb dating. However, a basic understanding of the microstructural processes that occur during leaching is lacking. We present the first 3D view of zircon dissolution based on X-ray computed tomography data acquired before and after acid leaching. These data are paired with images of etched grain surfaces and Raman spectral data. We also reveal exciting opportunities for imaging radiation damage zoning in 3D.
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Multi-thermochronometry, in which methods such as (U-Th)/He dating of zircon and apatite and apatite fission track dating are combined, is used to reconstruct rock thermal histories. Our ability to reconstruct thermal histories and interpret the geological significance of measured ages requires modeling. Here we use forward models to explore effects of grain size and chemistry on cooling ages and closure temperatures for the (U-Th)/He decay systems in apatite and zircon.
Richard A. Ketcham and Murat T. Tamer
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We present the results of a series of experiments that constrain the temperature sensitivity of fission tracks in monazite over geological time. It is concluded that over a heating duration of 10 million years, the estimated closure temperature is < 50 °C and perhaps not much above ambient surface temperatures. Monazite fission track thermochronology has the potential to understand the thermal history and constrain the timing of geological processes in the Earth’s upper crust (< 1–2 km).
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Short summary
We present the first new image-based study to reveal how choices made by different analysts affect the results obtained by fission-track analysis. Participants analyzed an identical image dataset with varying grain quality. Experienced analysts tend to select lower numbers of unsuitable grains and conduct lower numbers of invalid length measurements. Fission-track studies need image data repositories, teaching modules, guidelines, an open science culture, and new approaches for calibration.
We present the first new image-based study to reveal how choices made by different analysts...
