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Aubrites

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Name

*click on the Name for more information

Structure Class

achondrites

Chemical Class

Aubrite

Country

Year found

2006

Mass

3 t

[Museum Collection]

(1) 19.6g  (2) 16.9g (3) 101g

History: Several tons of this material have been found on the ground or by digging near Al Haggounia, Morocco (Chennaoui et al. 2007) for description of the strewn field) and sold to several dealers. The coordinates are given for the center of the strewn field, which extends ~ 40 km. Physical characteristics: It is impossible to assess precisely the amount of material already (and to be) recovered, but according to dealers, collectors, and Jambon it is about 3 metric tons composing many samples of varied sizes (from a few g to 50 kg). The largest stones were recovered after excavating them from the ground. The outer surface is rusty brown due to severe alteration. Looks like a sedimentary breccia cemented by iron oxide and carbonate. Color changes from bluish gray to rusty brown closest to the fractures are observed. Yellow patches of sulfur (alteration) are widespread. The rocks are significantly porous with pore sizes from several cm to hundreds of microns. Petrography: (A. Jambon, O. Boudouma and D. Badia. UPVI) Dominated by enstatite and plagioclase. Troilite, graphite daubreelite, oldhamite, kamacite rich in Si and schreibersite are present. Mineral compositions: Enstatite (En98Fs1Wo1) and plagioclase (Ab78An16Or5). Classification: Achondrite (aubrite); extensive weathering. Similar to and likely paired with NWA 002, 1067, 2736, 2828, 2965. Type specimens: A total of 50 g of sample and three polished sections are on deposit at UPVI. Main masses: Beroud, 3886 g (26 pieces from 1185 g to 5.8 g); PThomas, 4497 g (33 pieces from 11 to 1507 g); Hmani, about 500 kg; Ouzrou, about 500 kg.

Al Haggounia 001
Cumberland Falls

Name

*click on the Name for more information

Structure Class

achondrites

Chemical Class

Aubrite

Country

Year found

1919

Mass

17 kg

[Museum Collection]

(1) 11.82g

Christie's Auction (9-23 Feb 2022)Lot#33
Provenance: National Museum of Natural History / Smithsonian Institution

• 分類  :オーブライト • 落下隕石:1919年 • 落下国 :アメリカ • 発見総重量  :17 kg • 同分類の隕石数:85個 • 来歴: スミソニアン博物館元所蔵 クリスティーズオークションにて落札 (9-23 Feb 2022) Lot#33 • Aubrite • Fall 1919 • United States • Found 17 kg • one of 85 meteorites in this classification • Provenance

Djoua 001

Name

*click on the Name for more information

Structure Class

achondrites

Chemical Class

Aubrite

Country

Year found

2021

Mass

22.51 kg

[Museum Collection]

(1) 15.08g   (2) 26.65g   (3) 10.12g   (4) 6.64g

(5) 2.98g

History: Scattered pieces of a very large, pale colored achondrite were found in February and March 2021 purportedly near Djoua, Algeria. Several small pieces were obtained by Ali Benamar, and three larger pieces were purchased by Aziz Zad in April 2021 from a dealer in Ouargla, Algeria. Additional material was acquired from Algerian dealers by Marcin Cimala and Habib Naji in May 2021 and by Mark Lyon (in collaboration with Craig Zlimen and Roberto Vargas) in July 2021. Physical characteristics: Exterior surfaces of the stones have black coatings in places which may be degraded fusion crust. Interiors are overall mottled beige and gray in color with sporadic small dark and rusty spots. Rare tiny grains of fresh metal are visible on polished pieces. Some large whitish grains (enstatite) are up to 1.5 cm across. Petrography: (A. Irving, UWS and P. Carpenter, WUSL) Very coarse grained unbrecciated aggregate of predominantly enstatite with accessory diopside, daubreelite, Ti-Cr-bearing troilite and rare Ni-poor kamacite. No plagioclase was found in the studied slice or endcut. Geochemistry: Enstatite (Fs0.1±0.3Wo0.7±0.1, range Fs0.0-0.8Wo0.6-1.0, N = 6), diopside (Fs0.3±0.5Wo44.9±3.4, range Fs0.0-0.9Wo48.3-41.9, N = 3), troilite (Ti 2.9 wt.%, Cr 0.3 wt.%), Ni-poor kamacite (Ni 1.5-2.2 wt.%, Si 0.02-0.08 wt.%, N = 4). Classification: Aubrite. Specimens: 138 g (26 g of which was donated by A. Benamar) including a polished slice and small polished endcut at UWB; remaining material with A. Zad and WangZ (8250 g), M. Cimala (1830 g), M. Lyon (3700 g in two pieces), C. Zlimen (2580 g), R. Vargas (120 g) and H. Naji (6014 g).

Mount Egerton

Name

*click on the Name for more information

Structure Class

achondrites

Chemical Class

Aubrite-an

Country

Year found

1941

Mass

22 kg

[Museum Collection]

(1) 2.471g  (2) 1.394g  (3) 1.055g  (4) 1.054g  (5) 1.017g  (6) 0.238g  (7) 10g(14pieces)

(8) 1.49g(12pieces)   (9) 1.31g(8pieces)

(10) 1.24g(11pieces)   (11) 1.17g(11pieces)

(12) 1.10g(7pieces) 

This is 1 of 6 approved meteorites classified as Aubrite-an. Search for specimens in the Smithsonian Institution collection (U.S.): Search for this meteorite in the Natural History Museum collection (U.K.): Search for this meteorite in the Museo Nazionale dell'Antartide database (Siena, Italy): Never published in the Meteoritical Bulletin

Ribbeck

Name

*click on the Name for more information

Structure Class

achondrites

Chemical Class

Aubrite

Country

Year found

2024

Mass

1800 g

[Museum Collection]

(1) 1.880g  (2) 1.07g     (3) 0.285g  (4) 0.195g  (5) 0.082g  (6) 0.058g  (7) 0.050g

• 分類:オーブライト • 落下隕石:2024年 • 落下国:ドイツ • 発見総重量:1.8 kg • 同分類の隕石数:85個 • 地球のような層構造を持った天体の地殻から飛来した。 • エンスタタイトコンドライトと近縁関係にある。 • この隕石は地球防衛システムにより大気突入前に検知されていた。 【 監修 北海道大学 圦本尚義 】 • Aubrite • Fall 2024 • Germany • Found 1.8 kg • one of 85 meteorites in this classification • This came from the crust of an earth-like layered object. • This is closely related to enstatite chondrites. • This meteorite was detected by the Asteroid Guard impact hazard assessment systems before it entered the atmosphere. 【Supervised by Prof. Hisayoshi Yurimoto, Hokkaido University】

Sebkha el Melah 001

Name

*click on the Name for more information

Structure Class

achondrites

Chemical Class

Aubrite

Country

Year found

2022

Mass

17 kg

[Museum Collection]

(1) 37.88g   (2) 13.05g   (3) 3.06g

History: This meteorite was found in late March 2022 in the region of "Wad Alhath" in Mali, about 54 km northeast of the village of Tamanieret and 245 km southeast of Taoudenni, by Sahrawi meteorite hunters. The total recovered amount was approximately 17 kg. Bachir Salek obtained 12.5 kg, including the main mass, which weighs 3550 g. Physical characteristics: This meteorite consists primarily of clusters of coarse, interlocking enstatite crystals with a pegmatitic texture. Individual crystals are cm-sized, many showing distinct cleavage planes and traces. Some enstatite crystals are milky-white in color, while a few are colorless translucent to transparent and gemmy. The enstatite crystals separate from the clusters easily, and the largest single crystal weighed 45 grams and was approximately 5 cm long and 2 cm wide. There are also scattered dark-colored patches on some of the crystals. Significant amounts of smooth cream-colored to white fusion crust are visible, although some fusion crust is dark-colored. No vesicles are present. The meteorite appears to be unbrecciated. Petrography: (A. Ross and C. Agee, UNM) Electron microprobe analyses and reflected light microscopy show that enstatite makes up approximately 98% of this meteorite. Scattered small diopside grains were detected. A single olivine grain was found in the sample microprobe mount. Small grains of kamacite, taenite, schreibersite, Ti-troilite, troilite, and daubreelite were the only accessory opaques observed. No other sulfides were detected. No feldspar was found in the microprobe mount. Geochemistry: (A. Ross, UNM) Enstatite Fs0.0±0.0Wo0.9±0.1, n=6; diopside Fs0.0±0.0Wo45.5±0.8, n=3; forsterite Fa0.0, n=1; kamacite Ni=4.3±0.8, Co=0.4±0.2 (wt%); taenite Ni=48.7, Co=0.11 (wt%). Classification: Aubrite, non-brecciated (after Keil, 1989). This aubrite has one of the highest modal abundances of enstatite ever reported (~98%). The enstatite, diopside, and forsterite of this meteorite have some of lowest iron contents (below electron microprobe major element detection limits) ever documented in an aubrite. Specimens: 216 g on deposit at UNM, Bachir Salek holds the main mass.

Name

*click on the Name for more information

Structure Class

achondrites

Chemical Class

Aubrite

Country

Year found

2021

Mass

2.22 kg

[Museum Collection]

(1) 2.98g   (2) 0.63g   (3) 0.577g

History: (H. Chennaoui Aoudjehane, FSAC, ATTARIK Foundation, A. Aaronson) On December 9, 2021, around 8:30 pm, many people from southern Morocco reported an important fireball east of Guelmim and northeast of Laayoune moving in a northwest to southeast direction. Two field missions to the fall area were conducted a few days after the fall by A. Aaronson, M. Fouadassi, M. Aoudjehane, L. Zennouri, H. Chennaoui (FSAC and ATTARIK foundation). Pieces of the fall were found close to Tiglit village and Oued Tiglit. Several eyewitnesses were interviewed. Among eyewitnesses was Mr. Ali Boutmoula, a nomad living in a tent exactly in the center of the fall area. At the time of fall he was outside his tent by the river, while his uncle was inside the tent. He saw a greenish light moving from northwest toward southeast (coming from Ouinet Ait Oussa located northwest from his position). He walked for a few " then he heard a large explosion over his head in the valley and the mountains, followed by two or three more explosions after the first one. The last explosion was a high-pitched sound like a bang in a tin bucket. He thought it was thunder. Stones were recovered all around his tent. A second eyewitness Mr. Hmadi Elkebchi was sitting with his family in Oum Laouitgat village. He heard Loud explosion coming from the west followed by three sonic booms, the last one was high pitched like hitting a metal object. He thought it was an earthquake. Mr. Lbaz Brahim is a third eyewitness living in Oum Laouitgat village. While leaving a mosque, he saw a blue colored fireball followed by a green light. He heard a large explosion, then a second and a third one, he reported a metallic sound like hitting tin can. The trajectory he reported was coming from Aouinat Ait Oussa in the northeast heading southwest toward Tiglit. The next day, he went searching for pieces of the meteorite, and all the valley smelled of sulfur. He found one of the largest stones. Mr. Mouloud Rkhaoui and Mr. Mohamed Dghaich, nomad shepherds who were camping about ten km east of Tiglit, heard three sonic booms followed by a whistling. In the morning, they went to the supposed fall area and found some pieces. The day after the fireball report, hundreds of hunters and people from the area went searching for the fall. All hunters reported a strong odor of sulfur in the entire valley. The first pieces were found in the same day near the junction of Oued Tiglit and Guelta Moukiyoud which flow towards Oued Draa. The region is steep with significant relief. Some pieces were found on a small relief called Assafaou which is part of the starting point of Jbel Bani the most important mountain of the Moroccan Anti-Atlas chain. The main mass was found at at 28.404°N, 10.373°W, and the strewn field extends to about 30 km towards the WNW. Physical characteristics: Six large pieces and many small fragments were recovered. The main mass is a 736 g complete stone, the other large pieces include: 507 g (broken), 310 g (complete), 209 g (complete), 130 g (broken), and 40 g (broken). Exterior is covered with multi-colored (green-orange-brown) fusion crust. Broken surfaces reveal a mild breccia of mm- to cm-sized fractured bright white pyroxene grains, elongate to stubby, permeated and bounded by shock-darken domains. Large pyroxenes include black material as needles or grain inclusions. Samples are fragile and easily broken. Magnetic susceptibility, measured on different stones, ranges from log χ (× 10-9 m3/kg) = 2.7 to log χ (× 10-9 m3/kg) = 3.6 (H. Chennaoui Aoudjehane, FSAC). Petrography: (A. Ross and C. Agee, UNM) Backscatter electron image maps show that enstatite makes up ~90-95% of this meteorite. Scattered diopside and olivine grains were observed, and only a single albite grain was detected in the microprobe mount. A few aluminous silica polymorph grains were also found. Ubiquitous shock melt pockets and veinlets are present throughout, most of which are silica-rich or albitic, although some are diopsidic in composition, and some have minor amounts of sulfur. Detected sulfides include: troilite, Ti-troilite, Cr-troilite, Mn-troilite, ferroan alabandite, ferromagnesian alabandite, daubreelite, and oldhamite. Metals include kamacite and taenite; Si was below detection limits in both metals. Rare schreibersite was observed. Vesicular enstatitic fusion crust was observed by BSE, apparent thickness is ~100-300 μm. Geochemistry: (A. Ross, UNM) Enstatite Fs0.08±0.06Wo0.9±0.3, n=12; diopside Fs0.02±0.01Wo44.7±1.7, n=5; olivine Fa0.04±0.04, n=5; albite Ab95.5±0.6Or3.5±0.2, n=2; troilite Fe=60.8±0.6, Ti=0.55±0.23, Cr=1.04±0.51, S=36.0±0.4 (wt%), n=20; Ti-troilite Ti=4.6±2.3 (wt%), n=3; Cr-troilite Cr=3.6 (wt%); Mn-troilite Mn=4.1 (wt%); ferroan alabandite Mn=43.2±4.2, Fe=16.2±2.8, Mg=1.3±1.1, S=36.8±0.6 (wt%), n=9; ferromagnesian alabandite Fe=14.3±2.6, Mg=8.7±0.6 (wt%), n=2; daubreélite Cr=34.0±1.0, Fe=17.0±0.7, Mn=1.8±0.6, S=43.2±0.4 (wt%) n=12; oldhamite Ca=51.6±2.3, Mn=0.9±0.3, S=42.6±0.2 (wt%), n=7; kamacite Fe=96.3±1.6, Ni=4,7±1.4, Co=0.3±0.2 (wt%), n=10; taenite Fe=50.0±11.0, Ni=47.5±10 (wt%) n=4; fusion crust SiO2=58.0±0.1, Al2O3=0.7±0.1, MgO=37.0±0.4, FeO=1.7±0.2, MnO=0.21±0.01, CaO=1.0±0.2, Na2O=0.26±0.04 (wt%), n=4.a Classification: Aubrite, fragmental monomict breccia (after Keil, 1989). Specimens: 20 g plus a probe mount on deposit at UNM, 16.5 g and a polished mount at UWB. Moroccan Ministry of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development holds 20 g, Adam Aaronson holds the main mass of 736 g as well as pieces of 507 g, 209 g, 130 g, 40 g, and other smaller fragments totaling 1702 g; 170 g with WangZ.

Tiglit
NWA4871

Name

*click on the Name for more information

Structure Class

achondrites

Chemical Class

Aubrite

Country

Year found

2006

Mass

906 g

[Museum Collection]

(1) 2.0g

History and physical characteristics: Sixty-one pieces with a total weight of 906 g were purchased in Tagounite, Morocco in May 2007. Most of the stones are medium to dark brown with some remnant fusion crust. Petrography: (T. Bunch and J. Wittke, NAU) A brecciated cumulate rock with clasts as large as 2 cm. The intact lithology is dominated by subhedral to anhedral polysynthetically twinned enstatite with fine-grained intercumulus intergrowths of feldspathic glasses and a silica phase. Other minerals include graphite, FeS, daubreelite, schreibersite, niningerite, perryite as exsolution lamellae in Si-bearing kamacite and Zn-bearing brezinaite. Large clasts show a multitude of sub-parallel, closely spaced compression fractures. Shock level is S3 and the weathering grade is W5 for small pieces (

NWA13278

Name

*click on the Name for more information

Structure Class

achondrites

Chemical Class

Aubrite

Country

Year found

2019

Mass

564 g

[Museum Collection]

(1) 7.45g   (2) 4.16g   (3) 2.47g

History: Purchased by Zaid Sbitti in November 2019 from a dealer in Ouargla, Algeria. Petrography: (A. Irving, UWS and P. Carpenter, WUSL) Breccia composed of large clasts of enstatite (with diopside exsolution lamellae) and subordinate forsterite set within a finer grained matrix composed of enstatite, sodic plagioclase, Cr-troilite, niningerite and Si-bearing kamacite. Geochemistry: Enstatite (Fs0.0-0.1Wo0.9-1.1, N = 2), diopside (Fs0.0-0.1Wo44.4-45.8, N = 2), forsterite (Fa0.0±0.0, N = 2), plagioclase (Ab86.1An0.5Or13.4), kamacite (Ni = 3.0 wt.%, Si = 3.1 wt.%), troilite (Cr = 2.8 wt.%). Classification: Aubrite. Specimens: 24.7 g in the form of a polished endcut at UWB; remainder held by Mr. L. Ouabicha and Mr. Z. Sbitti.

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