Lunar Meteorite: Northwest Africa 15629
| from The Meteoritical Bulletin, No. 113 Northwest Africa 15629 (NWA 15629)(Northwestern Africa) Lunar meteorite History: Purchased by Mark Lyon in 2022 from an Algerian dealer. Petrography: (A. Irving, UWS and P. Carpenter, WUSL) The specimen is a complex, highly shocked breccia containing mostly feldspathic material (both as lithic clasts and disaggregated debris) but also some mare basaltic material, as well as discrete melt-matrix breccia clasts and glassy clasts with spherulitic quenchiform textures. All constituent plagioclase in the specimen has been converted to maskelynite, and olivine grains exhibit orange colors in thin section. Lithic clasts with intergranular to microgabbroic textures composed of anorthite, pigeonite and olivine, as well as relatively sodic plagioclase (bytownite) mineral clasts, are present and have the attributes of mare basalt lithologies. Accessory phases include kamacite, taenite, troilite, ilmenite, baddeleyite, merrillite and Cr-pleonaste. Some olivine has been altered to chlorite-like phyllosilicates (with low oxide sums and elevated FeO/MnO ratios). Minor secondary barite and calcite veinlets are also present. Geochemistry: Olivine (Fa22.9-49.7, FeO/MnO = 79-101, N = 5), low-Ca pyroxene (Fs19.7-30.2Wo4.0-2.7, FeO/MnO = 52-61, N = 2), pigeonite (Fs24.0-29.9Wo8.7-9.5, FeO/MnO = 52-69, N = 2), subcalcic augite (Fs28.7-38.0Wo20.0-21.1; Fs17.7Wo33.9; FeO/MnO = 59-60, N = 3), bytownite (An72.1Or1.8), anorthite (An93.4-97.0Or0.6-0.1, N = 4). Classification: Lunar (mingled feldspathic/basaltic breccia, maskelynite-bearing). Specimens: 22.3 g including one polished thin section and a large polished slice at UWB; remainder with Mr. M. Lyon. |
| Randy Says… I have not studied Northwest Africa 15629. |
More InformationMeteoritical Bulletin Database NWA 15629 |