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Howardites

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Sariçiçek

Name

*click on the Name for more information

Structure Class

HED achondrites

Chemical Class

Howardite

Country

Year found

2015

Mass

15.24 kg

[Museum Collection]

(1)25.273g   (2)18.492g   (3)8.841g   (4)7.575g
(5)5.906g   (6)3.711g   (7)3.105g   (8)2.628g

(9)2.050g   (10)10.355g

History: (O. Ünsalan, UIst; P. Jenniskens, SETI): A bright bolide was seen and heard in Bingol province, Turkey, and recorded on several video security cameras on 2015 Sept 2 at 20:10:30 UT. Shortly after the fireball, small meteorites were heard raining down on houses in the village of Saricicek. The next morning, people found pea-sized meteorites on the street and in yards. Tuğçe Özduman of the police in Bingöl supplied the first video data from traffic cameras in Bitlis, a neighboring city. Dedicated searches were done by Iskender Demirkol, Ibrahim Yasin Erdoğan, Aydın Sükrü Bengü and Vedat Avci of Bingol University. The 27 g meteorite analyzed here was found by Mehmet Nezir Ergün of Sariçiçek the morning of September 4. Physical characteristics: (O. Ünsalan, UIst; P. Jenniskens, SETI): The meteorite is fully crusted and has a shiny, light-brown crust. The shape is irregular and rounded, indicative of high altitude fragmentation and ongoing breakup until just before deceleration. Petrography: (M. Zolensky, JSC): Petrographically heterogeneous rock consisting of lithic and mineral clasts in a fine-grained matrix of crushed material. The matrix consists of high-Ca pyroxene (probably clinopyroxene) from the eucritic component, low-Ca pyroxene (probably orthopyroxene) from the diogenitic component, plagioclase, silica, kamacite, troilite, chromite, ilmenite and rare olivine. Clino- and orthopyroxene are present in approximately equal amounts. Single mineral grains and clasts of orthopyroxene, clinopyroxene, plagioclase, and rare olivine, all to a maximum size of 1 mm. Crystals of clinopyroxene frequently contain exsolution lamellae of orthopyroxene, in which both phases can contain oriented chromite inclusions. Three types of rock clasts are distinguished: (1) Clasts consisting plagioclase and silica, the former containing inclusions of chromite and ilmenite, and the latter containing blebs of troilite; (2) clasts consisting of an intergrowth of plagioclase and silica, with both phases hosting large blebs of troilite; (3) ophitic to subophitic basalt clasts consisting of an intergrowth of plagioclase laths and zoned clinopyroxene, in some cases with troilite blebs situated along the boundaries of the plagioclase crystal laths. Eucritic material appears to be more abundant than the diogenitic component. Single mineral grains and clasts show different degrees of shock deformation, including irregular fractures and folded pyroxene lamellae, and a significant fraction of the finest grained matrix appears to be poorly crystalline. Near the fusion crust melted troilite has been injected into cracks in silicates. Geochemistry: (M. Zolensky, JSC): The matrix consists of high-Ca pyroxene (probably clinopyroxene) Fs50±18Wo26±20, FeO/MnO= 21.0-45.9, N=29, from the eucritic component, low-Ca pyroxene (probably orthopyroxene) with Fs28±6Wo2±1, FeO/MnO = 31.1-36.7, n=23 from the diogenitic component and Fs53±19Wo3±3; plagioclase, An83.5-89.6Or0.2-4.0; olivine, Fa18-21, FeO/MnO= 30.1-43.1, average Fa80, PMD=1.6%, N=4. Single mineral grains and clasts: orthopyroxene, Fs22-70Wo1-2; clinopyroxene, Fs28-60Wo6-36, some compositionally zoned; plagioclase, An85.5-89.6Or0.2-0.6; olivine, Fa21. Basaltic clasts: plagioclase, An85Or1; clinopyroxene, Fs33-55Wo6-12. Classification (M. Zolensky, JSC): Howardite Specimens: 27 g sample #SC24 at UIst. 27 g sample #SC12, described above, with P. Jenniskens. A list of other finds is maintained at http://turk-met.net/saricicek-meteoritleri/. Small meteorites are at the UIst, Department of Physics (Ozan Ünsulan). A small collection of meteorites is at Bingol University (Iskender Demirkol).

NWA2060

Name

*click on the Name for more information

Structure Class

HED achondrites

Chemical Class

Howardite

Country

Year found

2003

Mass

985 g

[Museum Collection]

(1) 6.4g

This is 1 of 446 approved meteorites classified as Howardite. Published in Meteoritical Bulletin, no. 88, MAPS 39, A215-A272 (2004)

NWA5957

Name

*click on the Name for more information

Structure Class

HED achondrites

Chemical Class

Howardite

Country

Year found

2007

Mass

1083 g

[Museum Collection]

(1) 3.3g

This is 1 of 446 approved meteorites classified as Howardite. Published in Meteoritical Bulletin, no. 98, MAPS 45, 1530-1551 (2010)

NWA6920

Name

*click on the Name for more information

Structure Class

HED achondrites

Chemical Class

Howardite

Country

Year found

2011

Mass

1468 g

[Museum Collection]

(1) 7.6g

This is 1 of 452 approved meteorites classified as Howardite. Published in Meteoritical Bulletin, no. 100, MAPS 49, E1-E101 (2014)

NWA8736

Name

*click on the Name for more information

Structure Class

HED achondrites

Chemical Class

Howardite

Country

Year found

2014

Mass

143.7 g

[Museum Collection]

(1) 1.3g

History: Purchased by Habib Naji from a Moroccan meteorite hunter in Guelmin, Morocco, October 2014. Physical characteristics: Single stone with weathered black fusion crust. A broken surface reveals a breccia with white clasts set in a fine-grained, light gray matrix; small (~1 mm) distinctive black CM fragments scattered throughout. Petrography: (C. Agee, UNM) Microprobe examination of a polished mount shows a highly brecciated howardite with ~30% diogenitic pyroxenes, ~20% equilibrated cumulate eucrite pyroxenes, and ~50% equilibrated basaltic eucrite clasts. Howardite lithologies contain accessory Fe-Ni metal, troilite, chromite, silica, apatite, and ilmenite. CM2 xenoliths show moderate foliation, with scattered type I chondrules, ~70%, phyllosilicate-rich matrix, FeNiS phase, troilite. Geochemistry: (C. Agee and N. Muttik, UNM) Diogenite orthopyroxene Fs27.4±6.4Wo2.4±0.3, Fe/Mn=30±2, n=7; cumulate eucrite low-Ca pyroxene Fs45.7±4.4Wo2.1±1.1, Fe/Mn=29±1, n=3, cumulate eucrite augite Fs18.8Wo41.8, Fe/Mn=23, n=1; cumulate eucrite pigeonite Fs35.7±0.0Wo14.8±0.8, Fe/Mn=28±2, n=2, basaltic eucrite low-Ca pyroxene Fs61.0±4.0Wo3.7±2.7, Fe/Mn=32±1, n=8; basaltic eucrite augite Fs35.6±7.7Wo42.1±0.5, Fe/Mn=37±3, n=2; basaltic eucrite pigeonite Fs45.7Wo18.3, Fe/Mn=31, n=1; plagioclase An87.4±3.7, n=6. CM2 xenoliths: type I chondrule olivine Fa2.3±1.1, Cr2O3=0.44±0.11 (wt%), n=6; ferroan olivine Fa37.9, Fe/Mn=111, Cr2O3=0.40 (wt%), n=1; enstatite Fs1.7Wo0.7, n=1; aluminous augite Fs1.9Wo29.5, n=1. Classification: Achondrite (howardite) with three lithologies: 1) diogenite, 2) equilibrated cumulate eucrite, 3) equilibrated basaltic eucrite. Xenolithic CM2 clasts are present throughout. Low weathering grade, high shock stage. Specimens: 20.2 g including a probe mount on deposit at UNM, Habib Naji holds the main mass.

NWA14759

Name

*click on the Name for more information

Structure Class

HED achondrites

Chemical Class

Howardite

Country

Year found

2021

Mass

819 g

[Museum Collection]

(1) 11.1g

History: Purchased by Eric Twelker in March 2021 from a dealer in Agadir, Morocco. Petrography: (A. Irving, UWS and J. Boesenberg, BrownU) Complex multi-component breccia containing some lithic clasts, but composed mainly of angular mineral clasts of pigeonite (both exsolved and unexsolved), orthopyroxene of diogenitic composition (with a wide range in Fe/Mg), augite, anorthite, relatively ferroan olivine, silica polymorph, troilite, chromite and ilmenite within a fine grained matrix containing kamacite and Ni-poor Fe metal. Polycrystalline lithic clasts observed in the studied thin section include a variety of eucrites (exhibiting gabbroic, microgabbroic, fine subophitic and granulitic textures), diogenites and very fine grained carbonaceous chondrites (composed predominantly of opaque matrix with very sparse small, granular chondrules). The overall proportion of diogenite material in this fresh specimen is ~30 vol.%. Geochemistry: Diogenitic orthopyroxene (Fs20.6-28.1Wo2.1-5.0, FeO/MnO = 26-30, N = 5; Fs32.5-37.5Wo2.9-4.8, FeO/MnO = 28-29, N = 3), olivine (Fa59.0-59.2, FeO/MnO = 45-46, N = 2), eucritic low-Ca pyroxene (Fs40.1-50.2Wo4.7-1.5, FeO/MnO = 27-33, N = 4; Fs60.3-65.9Wo2.3-6.5, FeO/MnO = 28-31, N = 4), eucritic augite (Fs20.8-25.6Wo43.8-43.7, FeO/MnO = 27-31, N = 2), pigeonite (Fs40.0-48.5Wo9.4-14.8, FeO/MnO = 30-31, N = 2), anorthite (An92.7-96.1Or0.3-0.0, N = 2). Classification: Howardite. Specimens: 20.4 g plus one polished thin section at UWB; remainder with Twelker.

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