Lunar Meteorite: Dhofar 025 clan

The Dhofar 025 clan consists of paired stones Dhofar 025, 301, 304, & 308

Dhofar 025 (751 g). Photo credit: unknown
A big slice of Dhofar 301 (right) and a small slab of Dhofar 304 (left). The tick marks on the scale are spaced at 1 mm. The white areas in the center of Dhofar 301 are amygdules – vugs filled with terrestrial alteration minerals, mainly gypsum, calcite, celestine, barite. Other vugs (reddish) contain iron hydroxides. Photo credit: Randy Korotev

from The Meteoritical Bulletin, No. 84

Dhofar 025

Oman
Found: 2000 March 5
Mass: 751 g (1 piece)

Lunar meteorite (anorthositic regolith breccia)

A brownish gray stone weighing 751 g was found in the Dhofar region of Oman.

Mineralogy and classification (M. Nazarov and M. Ivanova, Vernad): fusion crust absent; meteorite is a regolith breccia containing numerous mineral fragments and clasts of feldspathic rocks embedded in a glass-rich matrix; schlieren and vesicles are abundant; feldspar, An95-96; pyroxene, En74-84Wo3-6 (Fe/Mn = 50-70 at.); olivine, Fo70-78 (Fe/Mn = 91-97 at.); accessory minerals are silica, Ti-rich alumochromite, troilite, and FeNi metal; meteorite has a prominent positive Eu anomaly (Sm/Eu = 1.95); terrestrial weathering is not significant.

Specimens: type specimen, 102 g plus two thin sections, Vernad; main mass with anonymous finder.

from The Meteoritical Bulletin, No. 86

Dhofar 301

Oman
Found: 2001 April 13
Mass: 9 g (1 piece)

Lunar meteorite (anorthositic impact melt breccia)

A brownish grey stone weighing 9 g was found in the Dhofar region, Oman.

Mineralogy and classification (M. Nazarov, Vernad; L. Taylor, UTenn): fusion crust is absent; meteorite is a clast-rich impact melt breccia containing numerous mineral fragments and lithic clasts embedded in a very fine-grained impact melt matrix. The lithic clast population is dominated by impact melt breccias; primary igneous rocks and granulites of mostly anorthositic and gabbro-noritic compositions are rare; mare basalt material is possibly present; feldspar, An90-98; orthopyroxene, Wo1-4En70-99; clinopyroxene, Wo6-43En1-74; olivine, Fo58-86 (Fe/Mn ~ 90 atom%); accessory minerals are Ti-rich chromite, ilmenite (7 wt% MgO), troilite, and FeNi metal (7-48 wt% Ni; 0.4-1.4 wt% Co); composition of the impact melt matrix is SiO2 = 44.1, TiO2 = 0.36, Al2O3 = 28.6, Cr2O3 = 0.10, FeO = 4.27, MnO = 0.07, MgO = 4.83, CaO = 16.5, Na2O = 0.39, K2O = 0.04, P2O5 = 0.07 (wt%); the meteorite is moderately weathered; gypsum, calcite, celestite, barite, and Fe hydroxides occur in cracks and holes. Dhofar 025 and Dhofar 301 are possibly paired because the stones were found nearby, and they are similar in texture and mineral chemistry.

Specimens: type specimen, 1.8 g plus a thin section, Vernad; main mass with anonymous finder.

from The Meteoritical Bulletin, No. 87

Dhofar 304

Oman
Found: 2001 April 13
Mass: 10 g (1 piece)

Lunar meteorite (anorthositic impact melt breccia)

A brownish grey stone weighing 10 g was found in the Dhofar region, Oman.

Mineralogy and classification (M. Nazarov, Vernad, L. Taylor, UTenn): fusion crust is absent; meteorite is a clast-rich impact melt breccia; mineral fragments and lithic clasts are embedded in a very fine-grained impact-melt matrix; the lithic clast population is dominated by impact melt breccias; possible igneous rocks and granulites of mostly anorthositic and gabbro-noritic compositions are rare. Mineral compositions are: feldspar, An93-99; orthopyroxene, Wo1- 5En70-90; clinopyroxene, Wo6-42En40-50; olivine, Fo60-90 (Fe/Mn ~87 at). Accessory minerals are Ti-rich chromite, Cr-pleonaste, ilmenite (7-8 wt % MgO), troilite, and FeNi metal (7.8 wt% Ni; 0.6 wt% Co). The composition of the impact-melt matrix (wt%) is SiO2 = 45.0, TiO2 = 0.34, Al2O3 = 25.3, Cr2O3 = 0.17, FeO = 5.71, MnO = 0.12, MgO = 7.09, CaO = 14.8, Na2O = 0.37, K2O = 0.04, P2O5 = 0.07. The meteorite is moderately weathered; gypsum, calcite, celestite, barite, and Fe hydroxides occur in cracks and holes. Dhofar 304 is possibly paired with Dhofar 025 and Dhofar 301 because the stones were found nearby, and they are similar in texture, mineral chemistry and degree of weathering.

Specimens: type specimens of 2 g, and a thin section, Vernad; main mass with anonymous finder.

from The Meteoritical Bulletin, No. 87

Dhofar 308

Oman
Found: 2001 April 13
Mass: 2 g (1 piece)

Lunar meteorite (anorthositic impact melt breccia?)

Randy Says…

Dhofar 025 is the first lunar meteorite to be found in the Sultanate of Oman. I have not studied Dhofar 308 but I assume that is paired with Dhofar 025, 301 and 304 on the basis of the reported find location. Compositionally, Dhofar 025 and pairs are a typical feldspathic lunar meteorite.

More Information

Meteoritical Bulletin Database

Dhofar 025 | 301 | 304 | 308

Map

Schematic Map of  Find Locations of  Lunar Meteorite from Oman

References

Al-Kathiri A., Hofmann B. A., Jull A. J. T., and Gnos E. (2005) Weathering of meteorites from Oman: Correlation of chemical and mineralogical weathering proxies with 14C terrestrial ages and the influence of soil chemistryMeteoritics & Planetary Science 40, 1215-1239.

Cahill J., Cohen B. A., Taylor L. A., and Nazarov M. A. (2001) Mineralogy and petrology of “new” lunar meteorite Dhofar 025Lunar and Planetary Science XXIII, abstract no. 1840.

Cahill J. T., Floss C., Anand M., Taylor L. A., Nazarov M. A., and Cohen B. A. (2004) Petrogenesis of lunar highlands meteorites: Dhofar 025, Dhofar 081, Dar al Gani 262, and Dar al Gani 400Meteoritics & Planetary Science 39, 503-530.

Cohen B. A., Taylor L. A., and Nazarov M. A. (2001) Impact melt compositions in lunar meteorite Dhofar 025Lunar and Planetary Science XXXII, abstract no. 1409.

Cohen B. A., Swindle T.D., Taylor L.A., and Nazarov M.A. (2002) 40Ar-39Ar ages from impact melt clasts in lunar meteorites Dhofar 025 and Dhofar 026Lunar and Planetary Science XXXIII, abstract no. 1252.

Demidova S. I., Nazarov M. A., Taylor L. A., and Patchen A. (2003) Dhofar 304, 305, 306 and 307: New lunar highland meteorites from OmanLunar and Planetary Science 34, abstract no. 1285.

Demidova S. I., Nazarov M. A., Lorenz C. A., Kurat G., Brandstätter F., and Ntaflos Th. (2007) Chemical composition of lunar meteorites and the lunar crustPetrology 15 (4), 386-407.

Fernandes V. A., Anand M., Burgess R., and Taylor L. A. (2004) Ar-Ar studies of Dhofar clast-rich feldspathic highland meteorites: 025, 026, 280, 303Lunar and Planetary Science XXXV, abstract no. 1514.

Fritz J. (2012) Impact ejection of lunar meteorites and the age of Giordano BrunoIcarus 221, 1183-1186.

Korochantseva E. V., Buikin A. I., Hopp J., Korochantsev A. V., and Trieloff M. (2016) 40Ar-39Ar results of lunar meteorites Dhofar 025, 280, 309, 730, 733, 1436, 1442, SaU 449, NWA 6888. 79th Annual Meeting of the Meteoritical Society, abstract no. 6317.

Korotev R. L. (2005) Lunar geochemistry as told by lunar meteoritesChemie der Erde 65, 297-346.

Korotev R. L. (2012) Lunar meteorites from OmanMeteoritics & Planetary Science 47, 1365-1402.

Korotev R. L. (2017) Update (2012–2017) on lunar meteorites from OmanMeteoritics & Planetary Science 52, 1251-1256.

All Korotev data on Omani lunar meteorites.

Korotev R. L., Jolliff B. L., Zeigler R. A., Gillis J. J., and Haskin L. A. (2003) Feldspathic lunar meteorites and their implications for compositional remote sensing of the lunar surface and the composition of the lunar crustGeochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 67, 4895-4923.

Leont’eva, E. M., Matukov D. I., Nazarov M. A., Sergeev S. A., Shukolyukov Y. A., Brandstaetter F. (2005) First_determination_of_the_isotopic_age_of_a_lunar_meteorite_by_the_uranium-lead_zircon_methodPetrology 13, 193-196.

Nazarov M. A., Demidova S. I., Patchen A., and Taylor L. A. (2002) Dhofar 301, 302 and 303: Three new lunar highland meteorites from OmanLunar and Planetary Science XXXIII, abstract no. 1293.

Nazarov M. A., Badyukov D. D., Lorents K.A., Demidova. S. I. (2004) The flux of lunar meteorites onto the EarthSolar System Research 38, 49-58.

Nishiizumi K. (2003) Exposure histories of lunar meteorites. Evolution of Solar System Materials: A New Perspective from Antarctic Meteorites, 104.

Nishiizumi K. and Caffee M. W. (2001) Exposure histories of lunar meteorites Dhofar 025, 026, and Northwest Africa 482. 64th Annual Meeting, Meteoritical Society, abstract no. 5411.

Shukolyukov Y. A., Nazarov M. A., Pätsch M., and Schultz L. (2001) Noble gases in three lunar meteorites from OmanLunar and Planetary Science XXXII, abstract no. 1502.

Taylor L. A., Nazarov M. A., Cohen B. A., Warren P. H., Barsukova L. D., Clayton R. N., and Mayeda T. K. (2001) Bulk chemistry and oxygen isotopic compositions of lunar meteorites Dhofar 025 and Dhofar 026: A second-generation impact meltLunar and Planetary Science XXXII, abstract no. 1985.

Warren P. H., Taylor L. A., Kallemeyn G., Cohen B. A., Nazarov M. A. (2001) Bulk-compositional study of three lunar meteorites: Enigmatic siderophile element results for Dhofar 026Lunar and Planetary Science XXXII, abstract no. 2197.

Warren P. H., Ulff-Møller F., and Kallemeyn G. W. (2005) “New” lunar meteorites: Impact melt and regolith breccias and large-scale heterogeneities of the upper lunar crustMeteoritics & Planetary Science 40, 989-1014.