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NWA15468

Name

*click on the Name for more information

Structure Class

 Chondrites

Chemical Class

OC4-melt breccia

Country

Year found

2022

Mass

30 kg

[Museum Collection]

(1)89.2g  (2)9.2g  (3)6.0g

History: Found at an undisclosed location in Mali in 2022. Most of the material (~30 kg) was purchased from a dealer in Niger by Taleb Ahmed Boulaouane, who sold ~13 kg to Nicholas Gessler. Other material was purchased in June 2022 by Ziyao Wang (1.8 kg) from a meteorite dealer in China and by Shun-Chung Yang (~5 kg) from a dealer in Erfoud, Morocco. Physical characteristics: The individual dark brown pieces lack fusion crust and some exhibit significant weathering. Interiors of some of the stones are much fresher; cut and polished surfaces have a very distinctive appearance in being overall deep brown in color, but with irregularly-distributed small, shiny metal grains and numerous thin metal coatings or veins along grain or segment boundaries. The proportion of metal to silicate is variable, but is up to ~45 vol.% in some portions. Petrography: (A. Irving, UWS, P. Carpenter, WUSL and J. Boesenberg, BrownU; A. Greshake, MNB) Three specimens were studied in detail at separate institutions. The unmelted portions of the specimens are composed of well-formed equilibrated chondrules (apparent diameter 500±260 µm, N = 30) containing forsteritic olivine, magnesian orthopyroxene (predominantly enstatite), pigeonite, subcalcic diopside, diopside and devitrified feldspathic glass set in a relatively coarse grained matrix containing abundant kamacite (altered to varying ° to Fe oxides), taenite, chromite, troilite and chlorapatite, but evidently no plagioclase. Partially melted portions have thin metal veins surrounding chondrule-bearing domains. Clasts have shock stage S2. Geochemistry: Forsterite (Fa8.5±0.4, range Fa8.0-9.2, FeO/MnO = 16-20, N = 20), magnesian orthopyroxene (Fs8.6±1.1Wo0.7±0.5, range Fs7.9-12.3Wo0.2-2.0, FeO/MnO = 10-18, N = 16), magnesian pigeonite (Fs9.6±1.8Wo6.7±0.1, range Fs8.3-10.9Wo6.7-6.6, FeO/MnO = 8-12; Fs6.6Wo17.3, FeO/MnO = 10; N = 3), subcalcic diopside (Fs8.6±0.3Wo25.2±0.2, range Fs8.4-8.8Wo25.7-24.8, FeO/MnO = 12-14, N = 2; Fs5.0±0.2Wo37.0±0.8, range Fs4.7-5.1Wo36.1-37.7, FeO/MnO = 7-9, N = 3), diopside (Fs4.3±1.0Wo43.1±2.5, range Fs3.1-5.7Wo39.9-47.2, FeO/MnO = 6-10, N = 8). Oxygen isotopes (D. Ibarra, BrownU): analyses of both acid-washed and unwashed subsamples of the freshest interior WZY-124 material by laser fluorination gave, the following closely comparable results: unwashed δ17O=4.034, δ18O=6.974, Δ17O=0.366 per mil; acid-washed δ17O=3.909, δ18O=6.608, Δ17O=0.433 per mil (TFL slope value = 0.526). All data were normalized to San Carlos olivine analyzed concurrently, per the recommendations of Sharp and Wostbrock (2021). Magnetic susceptibility was measured at UWB and MNB on the freshest interior material and gave a mean value of log χ (× 10-9 m3/kg)=5.60. Classification: Ordinary chondrite (OC4-melt breccia). This meteorite has relatively high metal content and magnetic susceptibility. Macroscopic observations show considerable heterogeneity in metal distribution, suggesting the meteorite is a melt breccia. The equilibrated mafic silicate compositions are much more magnesian than observed in H chondrites. The oxygen isotopic composition plots above the terrestrial fractionation line, but it is distant from the established trend for H, L, and LL ordinary chondrites. Specimens: 112 g including two polished thin sections at UWB; 40 g including one polished thin section at MNB; remainder with Mr. N. Gessler (~13 kg), WangZ (1710 g), Mr. S.-C-Yang (~5 kg) and Mr. Taleb Ahmed Boulaouane (~8 kg).

Name

*click on the Name for more information

Structure Class

 Chondrites

Chemical Class

OC4-melt breccia

Country

Year found

2023

Mass

70 kg

[Museum Collection]

(1)67.94g  (2)24.25g

History: The meteorite was purchased from a meteorite dealer in Morocco. Physical characteristics: Many dark brownish fragments without fusion crust. Petrography: Chondrite composed of chondritic portions surrounded by abundant finely recrystallized metal-rich melt rock veins and pockets. Chondritic portions have well-defined chondrules (apparent diameter about 600 µm) containing forsteritic olivine, magnesian orthopyroxene often overgrown by Ca-rich pyroxene plus sodic plagioclase set in a matrix containing abundant FeNi metal, taenite, chromite, and troilite. No secondary plagioclase detected. Geochemistry: olivine: Fa8.3±0.5 (Fa7.6-8.9, FeO/MnO = 17-19, n=12), orthopyroxene: Fs8.5±0.4Wo0.6±0.2 (Fs8.1-9.7Wo0.3-0.8, FeO/MnO = 10-11, N = 14); augite: Fs3.7±0.3Wo44.1±2.4 (Fs3.3-4.0Wo40.4-46.7, FeO/MnO=7-10, N = 6) Classification: OC4-melt breccia. Likely paired with Northwest Africa 15468

NWA15878
Sierra Gorda 009

Name

*click on the Name for more information

Structure Class

 Chondrites

Chemical Class

Chondrite-ung

Country

Year found

2017

Mass

240 g

[Museum Collection]

(1) 7.495g

History: Three pieces (30 g, 70 g, and 140 g) of one meteorite were found in the the desert by Mr. T. V. Kryachko, Mr. M. E. Nepomiluev, and an anonymous finder. Physical characteristics: All samples of the meteorite have a brown fusion crust Petrography: M. A. Ivanova (Vernad) Meteorite has chondritic texture and consists of FeNi-metal (22 -25 vol%), chondrules, and their fragments; matrix is absent. Chondrules, up to 2 mm, are PP, BO, POP, SiO2-bearing and Al-rich with clear bounaries; PP chondrules are dominant; the main minerals are pyroxene, Fe,Ni-metal, olivine and sulfides (troilite and daubreelite), schreibersite; accessory minerals are silica, Mg-chromite, anorthite, spinel, graphite and PGE-metal nuggets. Geochemistry: Mineral compositions and geochemistry: M. A. Ivanova (Vernad), V. V. Kozlov (Oxford Instruments OM & Gatan Inc., Moscow Office) Olivine: Fa0.47±0.10 (N=74), orthopyroxene: Fs1.42±0.39Wo0.88±0.63 (N=42), (N=42), FeO-rich Opx: Fs9.33-32.48Wo0.23-4.74; diopside: Fs1.34±0.57Wo47.32±2.31; plagioclase varies in composition: An 32.28-95.04Ab4.96-65.99; mesostasis in chondrules is enriched in K2O (up to 9.18 wt%) and TiO2 (up to 6.53 wt%); kamacite contains 5.07 wt% Ni, 0.43 wt% Co, Co/Ni - 0.09, Si and Cr are below detection (

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