Lunar Meteorite: Northwest Africa 8586

A slice of Northwest Africa 8566. Photo credit: Heritage Auctions
Lab sample of NWA 8566. Photo credit: Randy Korotev

from The Meteoritical Bulletin, No. 103

Northwest Africa 8586 (NWA 8586)

Mauritania
Purchased: 2014 Feb
Mass: 704.5 g (1 piece)

Lunar meteorite (feldspathic breccia)

History: Purportedly found in Mauritania and purchased by Darryl Pitt in February 2014 from a dealer in Nouadhibou, Mauritania.

Physical characteristics: Single stone (704.5 g) composed of light gray to beige clasts in a dark gray matrix.

Petrography: (A. Irving and S. Kuehner, UWS) Fragmental breccia consisting of angular clasts in a finer grained matrix. Minerals are olivine orthopyroxene, subcalcic augite, augite, diopside), anorthite, ilmenite, troilite, rare kamacite and taenite. Several small mare basalt clasts were observed.

Geochemistry: Olivine (Fa21.7-47.0, FeO/MnO = 80-85, N = 3), orthopyroxene (Fs32.3-47.7Wo2.9-2.7, FeO/MnO = 53-65), subcalcic augite (Fs45.3-51.6Wo25.6-21.4, FeO/MnO = 55-59), augite (Fs13.7-14.2Wo44.3-44.0, FeO/MnO = 36-39), diopside (Fs8.7Wo40.8, FeO/MnO = 38), plagioclase (An96.9-97.4Or0.1-0.2).

Bulk composition: (R. Korotev, WUSL) INAA of subsamples gave the following mean abundances (in wt.%) FeO 4.3, Na2O 0.39; (in ppm) Sc 8.5, Ni 66, La 2.7, Sm 1.18, Eu 0.81, Yb 1.10, Lu 0.156, Hf 0.94, Th 0.7.

Classification: Lunar (feldspathic fragmental breccia).

Specimens: 20.1 g including one polished thin section at UWB. The main mass is held by DPitt.

Randy Says…

Compositionally, Northwest Africa 8586 is a typical feldspathic lunar meteorite.

More Information

Meteoritical Bulletin Database

NWA 8586

References

Korotev R. L. and Irving A. J. (2015) Keeping up with the lunar meteorites  2015. 46th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, abstract no. 1942.

Korotev R. L. and Irving A. J. (2021) Lunar meteorites from northern Africa. Meteoritics & Planetary Science, 206–240.