Secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) U-Pb ages of Ca-phosphates from four texturally distinct breccia samples (72255, 76055, 76015, 76215) collected at the Apollo 17 landing site were obtained in an attempt to identify whether they represent a single or several impact event(s). The determined ages, combined with inferences from petrologic relationships, may indicate two or possibly three different impact events at 3920 +/- 3 Ma, 3922 +/- 5 Ma, and 3930 +/- 5 Ma (all errors 2 sigma). Searching for possible sources of the breccias by calculating the continuous ejecta radii of impact basins and large craters as well as their expected ejecta thicknesses, we conclude that Nectaris, Crisium, Serenitatis, and Imbrium are likely candidates. If the previous interpretation that the micropoikilitic breccias collected at the North Massif represent Serenitatis ejecta is correct, then the average Pb-207/Pb-206 age of 3930 +/- 5 Ma (2 sigma) dates the formation of the Serenitatis basin. The occurrence of zircon in the breccias sampled at the South Massif, which contain Ca-phosphates yielding an age of 3922 +/- 5 Ma (2 sigma), may indicate that the breccia originated from within the Procellarum KREEP terrane (PKT) and the Imbrium basin appears to be the only basin that could have sourced them. However, this interpretation implies that all basins suggested to fall stratigraphically between Serenitatis and Imbrium formed within a short (<11 Ma) time interval, highlighting serious contradictions between global stratigraphic constraints, sample interpretation, and chronological data. Alternatively, the slightly older age of the two micropoikilitic breccias may be a result of incomplete resetting of the U-Pb system preserved in some phosphate grains. Based on the currently available data set this possibility cannot be excluded.

Apollo 12 breccia 12013 is composed of two portions, one grey in colour, the other black. The grey portion of the breccia consists mainly of felsite thought to have formed during a single crystallisation event, while the black part is characterized by presence of lithic fragments of noritic rocks and individual plagioclase crystals. In this study, U-Pb analyses of Ca-phosphate and zircon grains were conducted in both portions of the breccia. The zircon grains within the grey portion yielded a large range of ages (4154 +/- 7 to 4308 +/- 6 Ma, 2 sigma) and show decreasing U and Th concentrations within the younger grains. Moreover, some grains exhibit recrystallisation features and potentially formation of neoblasts. The latter process requires high temperatures above 1600-1700 degrees C leading to the decomposition of the primary zircon grain and subsequent formation of new zircon occurring as neoblasts. As a result of the high temperatures, the U-Pb system of the remaining original zircon grains was most likely open for Pb diffusion causing partial resetting and the observed range of (20)(7)pb/Pb-206 ages. The event that led to the Pb loss in zircon could potentially be dated by the U-Pb system in Ca-phosphates, which have a weighted average (207)pb/ Pb-206 age across both lithologies of 3924 +/- 3 Ma (95% conf.). This age is identical within error to the combined average (20)(7)pb/Pb-206 age of 3926 +/- 2 Ma that was previously obtained from Ca-phosphates within Apollo 14 breccias, zircon grains in Apollo 12 impact melt breccias, and the lunar meteorite SaU 169. This age was interpreted to date the Imbrium impact. The zircon grains located within the black portion of the breccia yielded a similar range of ages (4123 +/- 13 to 4328 +/- 14 Ma, 2 sigma) to those in the grey portion. Given the brecciated nature of this part of the sample, the interpretation of these ages as representing igneous crystallisation or resetting by impact events remains ambiguous since there is no direct link to their source rocks via textural relationships or crystal chemistry. Similarly, the currently available zircon data set for all lunar samples may be distorted by partial Pb loss, resulting in meaningless and misleading age distribution patterns. Therefore, it is crucial to fully understand and recognize the processes and conditions that may lead to partial resetting of the U-Pb system in zircon in order to better constrain the magmatic and impact history of the Moon.