Education
- B.Sc., University of Aberdeen
- Ph.D., University of Toronto
Martian breccia NWA 7533 contains the oldest rocks from Mars (potash feldspar rich) with 4.4 billion year zircons
Research Interest Statement
We study meteoritic chondrules and refractory inclusions to determine the astrophysical and planetary processes that formed them; chondrites for information on asteroid geology; and martian meteorites to determine the roles of volcanic and impact processes in Mars history.
Honors
Leonard Medal of the Meteoritical Society, September 2014
Publications
1. R.H. Hewins, P.-M. Zanetta, H. Leroux, S. Laforet, C. Le Guillou, M. Marinova, S. Pont, B. Zanda, R. Brunetto, Y., J. Gattacceca, C. Sonzogni, L. Piani, and Y. Marrocchi (2025). Accretion of the anomalous CR2 chondrite Northwest Africa 14674: Implications for the complexities of the CR parent bodies. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gca.2025.05.037
2. Malarewicz V., Beyssac O., Zanda B., Marin-Carbonne J., Leroux H., Rubatto D., Bouvier A.S., Deldicque D., Pont S., Bernard S., Bloch E., Bouley S., Humayun M., and Hewins R.H. (2025). Quartz on Mars! Evidence for pre-Noachian granitic rocks from Martian regolith breccia NWA 7533. Nature Geoscience, 18, 207–212.
3. R.H. Hewins, H. Leroux, D. Jacob, S. Pont, O. Beyssac, V. Malarewicz, J.-P. Lorand, P.-M. Zanetta, and B. Zanda (2024). Pervasive shock-melting at >65 GPa in a martian basalt, the shergottite Northwest Africa 14672. Meteoritics & Planetary Science, 59, 640–669.
4. Malarewicz V., Beyssac O., Zanda B., Hewins R., Pont S., Bouley S., and Rosier P. (2023). Raman spectroscopy investigations of the Martian regolith breccia Northwest Africa 7533: A support to in situ Raman spectroscopy on Mars. Journal of Raman Spectroscopy, 54, 748–768.
5. R.H. Hewins, P.-M. Zanetta, B. Zanda, and 17 others (2021). Northwest Africa (NWA) 12563 and ungrouped C2 chondrites: Alteration styles and relationships to asteroids. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 311, 238–273.
6. Whattam S.A., Hewins R.H., Seo J., and Devouard B. (2022). Refractory inclusions as Type IA chondrule precursors: Constraints from melting experiments. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 319, 30–55.
7. R.H. Hewins, M. Humayun, J.-A. Barrat, B. Zanda, and 6 others (2020). Northwest Africa 8694, a ferroan chassignite: bridging the gap between nakhlites and chassignites. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 282, 201–226.
8. R.H. Hewins, B. Zanda, S. Pont, and P.-M. Zanetta (2019). Northwest Africa 10414, a pigeonite cumulate shergottite. Meteoritics & Planetary Science, 54, 2132–2148.
9. Roger Hewins, Claire Condie, Melissa Morris, Mark Richardson, Nicolas Oullette, and Matthew Metcalf (2018). Thermal history of CBb chondrules and cooling rate distributions of ejecta plumes. The Astrophysical Journal Letters, 855:L17 (7 pages).
10. R. Hewins, B. Zanda, H. Leroux, M. Humayun, A. Nemchin, J.P. Lorand, S. Pont, D. Deldicque, J. Bellucci, P. Beck, H. Leroux, M. Marinova, L. Remusat, C. Göpel, E. Lewin, M. Grange, A. Kennedy, and M.J. Whitehouse (2017). Regolith breccia Northwest Africa 7533: Mineralogy and petrology and implications for early Mars. Meteoritics & Planetary Science, 51, 89–124. https://doi.org/10.1111/maps.12740
11. Hewins R.H., Bourot-Denise M., Zanda B., Leroux H., Barrat J.-A., Humayun M., Göpel C., Greenwood R.C., Franchi I.A., Pont S., Lorand J.-P., Cournède C., Gattacceca J., Rochette P., Kuga M., Marrocchi Y., and Marty B. (2014). The Paris meteorite, the least altered CM chondrite so far. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 24, 90–222.
12. Humayun A., Nemchin A., Zanda B., Hewins R.H., Grange M., Kennedy A., Lorand J.-P., Göpel C., Fieni C., Pont S., and Deldicque D. (2013). Origin and age of the earliest Martian crust from meteorite NWA 7533. Nature, 503, 53–56. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature2764
13. Hewins R.H. and Zanda B. (2012) Chondrules: precursors and interactions with the nebular gas. Meteorit. Planet. Sci. 47, 201-38.
14. Hewins R.H., Zanda B. and Bendersky C. (2012) Evaporation and recondensation of sodium in Semarkona Type II chondrules. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 78, 1-7.
15. Boesenberg J. and Hewins R.H. (2010) An experimental investigation into the formation of phosphoran olivine and pyroxene. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 74, 923-94.
16. Whattam, S.A., and Hewins, R.H. (2009) An origin for PO chondrules from thermally annealed granoblastic olivine aggregates. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 73, 5460–5482.
17. E. J. Tronche, R. H. Hewins, and G. J. MacPherson (2007) Formation conditions of aluminum-rich chondrules. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 70, 336-338.
18. Zanda B., R. H. Hewins, M. Bourot-Denise, P. A. Bland and F. Albarède (2006) Formation of Solar Nebula Reservoirs by Mixing Chondritic Components. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 248, 650-660.
19. Hewins R. H., Connolly H. C. Jr., Lofgren G. E. and Libourel G. (2005) Experimental constraints on chondrule origins. In Chondrites and the Protoplanetary Disk (eds. A. N. Krot, E. R. D. Scott and B. Reipurth), ASP Conference Series 341, 286-316. Astronomical Society of the Pacific, San Fransisco.
20. B. A. Cohen and R. H. Hewins (2004) An experimental study of the formation of metallic iron in chondrules. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 68, 677-689.
21. R. H. Hewins and G. E. Fox (2004) Chondrule textures and precursor grain size: an experimental study. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 68, 197-925.
22. Yu Y., Hewins R.H., Alexander C.M.O’D. and Wang J. (2003) Experimental study of evaporation and isotopic mass fractionation of potassium in silicate melts. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 67, 773-786.
23. Cohen, B.A., Hewins, R.H. and Yu Y. (2000) Evaporation in the young solar nebula as the origin of “just-right” melting of chondrules. Nature 406, 600-602.