Lunar Meteorite: Northwest Africa 16286
| from The Meteoritical Bulletin, No. 112 Northwest Africa 16286 (NWA 16286)(Northwestern Africa) Lunar meteorite (basalt) History: Purchased by Didi Baidari in February 2023 from a dealer in Ouargla, Algeria. Petrography: (A. Irving, UWS, and J. Boesenberg, BrownU) Olivine-phyric basalt composed of zoned subhedral olivine phenocrysts (up to 0.3 mm long), smaller zoned anhedral clinopyroxene grains (mean size ~0.2 mm) and thin laths of maskelynite (mean length ~0.2 mm) accompanied by accessory ilmenite (as fairly abundant thin, acicular grains), chromite and interstitial glassy mesostasis with quench crystallites. Geochemistry: Olivine (Fa42.1-60.7, FeO/MnO = 90-114, N = 11), pigeonite (Fs31.1Wo17.4, FeO/MnO = 54), subcalcic augite (Fs30.1Wo26.8, FeO/MnO = 59; Fs25.2-49.0Wo37.1-30.8, FeO/MnO = 51-67, N = 10), subcalcic ferroaugite (Fs65.5-69.1Wo21.1-23.3, FeO/MnO = 78-79, N = 2), maskelynite (An75.4-79.3Or0.8-2.4, N = 6). Classification: Lunar (mare basalt, olivine-phyric). Specimens: 25.2 g including one polished thin section at UWB; remainder with Mr. D. Baidari. |
| Randy Says… I have not studied Northwest Africa 16286. Boesenberg and Irving (2024) note that on the basis of petrography: “NWA 16286 does not appear to have an obvious match among the other 20 known lunar basalt meteorites, though NWA 14526 and NWA 14137 certainly appear close.” There are no whole-rock compositional data for any of these meteorites. |
More InformationMeteoritical Bulletin Database NWA 16286 References Boesenberg J. S. and Irving A. J. (2024) Petrology of lunar unbrecciated mare basaltic meteorites Northeast Africa 039 and Northwest Africa 16286. 55th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, abstract no. 1207. |