Abstract
article i nfo We attempt to constrain the variability of the flux of extraterrestrial 3 He in the Paleocene by studying sediments from Shatsky Rise (Ocean Drilling Program, ODP Leg 198) that have tight orbital age control. 3 He concentrations in Shatsky Rise sediments vary periodically at high frequency by about a factor of 6 over the 800-ka record analyzed. Virtually all of the sedimentary 3 He (N99.98%) is of extraterrestrial origin. The total helium in the sediments can be explained as a binary mixture of terrestrial and extraterrestrial components. We calculate an average 3 He/ 4 He ratio for the extraterrestrial endmember of 2.41±0.29×10 �4 , which is, remarkably, equal to that measured in present-day interplanetary dust particles. We determine a constant extraterrestrial 3 He flux of 5.9±0.9×10 �13 cm 3 STP
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