Oman
Found 2005 January
Lunar (feldspathic fragmental breccia)
A 115.2 g stone in the shape of a thin-bladed talon, was found by Michael Farmer in the Dhofar region of Oman. Description and classification (T. Bunch and J. Wittke, NAU): feldspathic fragmental breccia that contains a variety of lithologies set in a well-indurated, comminuted matrix of similar materials; fragments and clasts display preferred orientation. Mostly ferroan anorthosites with clasts of gabbroic anorthosites, anorthositic gabbros and norites, troctolites, olivine gabbros, microporphyritic and fine-grained impact melt breccias, and rare, ophitic/subophitic basalts and symplectites of unknown provenance. Anorthositic plagioclase, An94.5-98, FeO = 0.280.78 wt. %. Olivine (FeO/MnO = 82-110): ferroan anorthosite, Fa38; norite, Fa18; olivine gabbro, Fa36.8. Orthopyroxenes (FeO/MnO = 5073): ferroan anorthosite, Fs38.6Wo2.1; olivine gabbro, Fs33.4Wo4.3; ophitic basalt core, Fs40Wo11.8, rim, Fs69.1Wo15.8. Very light weathering. Specimens: type specimen, 20.6 g, NAU; main mass. Farmer/Woolard.
Oman
Find: 2006
Lunar (feldspathc impact melt breccia)
History: A stone was recovered from the Dhofar region of Oman in March 2006.
Physical characteristics: A small (18.8g), complete, and very dark stone with no remaining fusion crust.
Petrography (J. Wittke and T. Bunch, NAU): Clast-rich, impact breccia with sparse vesicles (< 0.6 mm) that is dominated by many varieties of quench-textured impact-melt breccias and plagioclase fragments. Minor amounts of olivine gabbros, troctolites, and olivine/pyroxene fragments are also present.
Geochemistry: Olivine gabbro olivine, Fa28.432.2, FeO/MnO = 79-94; Ca-pyroxenes, Fs10.125.7Wo 40.613.0; plagioclase, An95.2-97.7. Troctolite olivine, Fa 17-24.3, FeO/MnO = 94-103; plagioclase, An96.5. Lightly weathered and moderately shocked.
Classification: Lunar (feldspathic impact-melt breccia).
Type specimens: A total of 3.6 g and one thin section are on deposit at NAU. Mr. Robert Ward is the holder of the main mass.
Algeria
Found 2005
Achondrite (lunar feldspathic breccia)
History: A 538 g fully crusted and minimally weathered stone was purchased in Morocco by A. Aaronson in November 2005.
Petrography and Geochemistry: (T. Bunch and J. Wittke, NAU) The feldspathic fragmental breccia contains many highlands fine-grained lithologies. Norite: Orthopyroxene (Fs26.4Wo4; FeO/MnO = 66). Olivine basalt: Olivine (Fa87.2; FeO/MnO = 95), plagioclase (An84.7). Subophitic basalt: Ca pyroxene (Fs2548Wo37.125.9), pigeonite (Fs27.831.7Wo15.49.3; FeO/MnO = 53), olivine (Fa36.3; FeO/MnO = 90), plagioclase (An97).
Gabbro: Olivine (Fa34.7; FeO/MnO = 95), pigeonite (Fs28.2Wo8.9; FeO/MnO = 67), plagioclase (An94). KREEPy-like basalt: Plagioclase (Ab50Or17.4), K feldspar (Ab14.3Or83) in addition to silica, phosphate, and Fe-rich pyroxenes. Troctolite: olivine (Fa30.8; FeO/MnO = 94), plagioclase (An94.7).
Granulitic impact melts: Olivine (Fa31), orthopyroxene (Fs25.2Wo3.4), plagioclase (An95).
Anorthosite: (An92.796.8), glassy impact melts, coarse-grained mineral fragments, and a 0.350 mm-size grain of meteoritic Ni, Fe metal (Ni = 6.3, Co = 1.0 [both wt. %]). In addition, the assemblage appears to be characterized by large amounts of breccias within
breccias with at least four generations of brecciation observed in one centimeter-size breccia clast. Numerous shock-induced melt veins are present along large breccia clast margins as well as isolated melt pockets within clasts. Interior weathering grade is very low, all glasses are fresh, and no apparent terrestrial alteration veins were noted.
Classification: Achondrite (lunar, feldspathic breccia).
Specimens: A 21.2 g type
specimen is on deposit at NAU. Aaronson holds the main mass.
Algeria
Find: 2006
Achondrite (lunar anorthositic breccia)
History: Found in the southern Algerian desert in May 2006. Sold to A. Aaronson in Morocco, June 2006.
Physical characteristics: Medium brown, oriented, nearly complete 163 g stone. Fresh, with very prominent flow lines.
Petrography (T, Bunch and J. Wittke, NAU): breccia-in-breccia structure, breccia clasts are granulated or cataclastized with fine-grained to melt matrix. Vesiculated shock-melt veins and isolated glass clumps are common. Consists of partially maskelynitized plagioclase fragments (47 vol %), shock-melt anorthositic clasts (38 vol %), dark glasses (7 vol %), norites and troctolites (6 vol %), and olivine and pyroxene fragments (2 vol %). No Mare components were observed.
Geochemistry: Plagioclase, An93.6-99, FeO = 0.150.35 wt %; olivine, Fa21.7-34.6. FeO/MnO = 79-87; orthopyroxene, Fs22.5-29.5Wo2.1-3.2, FeO/MnO = 53 -59; pigeonite, Fs49.3Wo5.2, FeO/MnO = 53;
augite exsolution lamellae in pigeonite, Fs27.4Wo43.1; ferroaugite, Fs45.8Wo38.9, FeO/MnO = 28.
Bulk composition (R. Korotev, WUSL, INAA of 224-mg sample): 2.7% FeO, 60 ppm Ni, 0.42 ppm Sm, 0.13 ppm Th.
Classification: Achondrite (lunar, anorthositc breccia).
Type specimens: a total of 20.4 g and one thin section are on deposit at NAU. The main mass holder is anonymous.
Northwest Africa
Find: 2006
Lunar (feldspathic breccia)
History and physical characteristics: A 40.7 g partially crusted, complete stone was purchased in Rissani. Morocco by A. Aaronson in December 2006. The hand specimen exhibits an abundance of large (between 0.6 and 2.1 mm in dia.) anorthositic clasts. The weathered portion of the crust is pale vermillion to light brown, fresher crust is dark gray to black.
Petrography (T. Bunch and J. Wittke, NAU; A. Irving, UWS): This mingled breccia contains anorthositic lithologies that include anorthosite, anorthositic norites, gabbros and troctolites, in addition to variolitic and subophitic basalt clasts, breccia-within-breccia clasts, and an abundance of olivine and plagioclase fragments. Melt and fragmental matrices are heterogeneously distributed. The interior shows very low weathering effects.
Mineral compositions: Anorthositic norite orthopyroxene is Fs28.5Wo3.8, FeO/MnO = 65. An unusual olivine gabbro contains olivine (Fa26.2; FeO/MnO = 96), plagioclase (An92.3), subcalcic pyroxene (Fs21.6Wo14.4, FeO/MnO = 48), and ilmenite with 6.5 wt % MgO. Variolitic basalt has olivine (Fa35.7, FeO/MnO = 103), pigeonite (Fs24.6Wo8.7) and plagioclase (An95.5).
Bulk composition (R. Korotev, WUSL): FeO 9.6 wt. %, Sm 3.9 ppm, Th 1.4 ppm, Ir 6.5 ppb.
Classification: Lunar (feldspathic breccia). Probably paired with NWA 2995.
Type specimen: A total of 8.8 g is on deposit at NAU. The main mass holder is anonymous.
Northwest Africa
Find: 2007
Lunar (anorthositic breccia)
History and physical characteristics: A 70 g, partially crusted stone was purchased in January 2007 by A. Aaronson and sold to a collector in July 2007. The fusion crust is dark to light brown and vermillion in translucent areas.
Petrography (T. Bunch, J. Wittke, NAU; A. Irving, UWS): This feldspathic melt breccia is dominated by very fine to medium-grained anorthositic lithologies that are typically enriched in olivine (anorthositic troctolites and gabbros) together with a large fraction of plagioclase, olivine, and exsolution-textured pyroxene fragments. Shock-melt clasts, K-, Ba-rich glasses, and fayalite-pyroxene-quartz igneous lithologies are also present. One granophyre clast shows a granophyric or micrographic texture of oriented quartz inclusions in alkali feldspar surrounded by shock-melted plagioclase. Most of the matrix is glassy and vesiculated with included mineral fragments. Weathering effects are minimal.
Mineral compositions: gabbro; olivine, Fa34.8 (FeO/MnO = 88); augite, Fs14.6Wo41.8 (FeO/MnO = 42); plagioclase, An97.6; chromite, Cr/(Cr+Al) = 0.74. Troctolite, Fa27.9 (FeO/MnO = 83). Norite orthopyroxene is Fs24.8Wo2.5 (FeO/MnO = 55), and augite is Fs20.4Wo38.9. Basaltic pyroxene fragments, host = Fs46.9Wo2.4, lamellae = Fs19.8Wo43.4. Granophyre K-feldspar is Or72Ab18.3.
Bulk chemistry (R. Korotev, WUSL): ---
Classification: Lunar (anorthositic breccia).
Type specimen: A total of 14 g is on deposit at NAU. The main mass holder is anonymous.
Algeria
Find: 2006
Lunar (feldspathic breccia)
History and physical characteristics: A single 234 g crusted stone was purchased in Rissani in 2007. The crust is fresh, some areas show melt bubbles and flow. A network of thin fractures is filled with weathering products.
Petrography (T. Bunch and J. Wittke, NAU; A. Irving, UWS): This stone is very dark, well indurated, and is fine-grained with few clasts that exceed one mm in diameter. No evidence of flow orientation was observed. NWA 4819 is a regolith breccia and has two unusual characteristics for a lunar sample: (1) a relatively large amount of homogeneously distributed fine-grained metallic nickel-iron (2 wt %) and troilite (1.5 wt. %) and (2) a large population of exsolution-textured pyroxene fragments. Most lithic clasts follow the ferroan anorthositic trend and include anorthosites, fine-grained anorthositic norites, gabbros, and troctolites, in addition to shock melt clasts, K-rich glass, and spherules. No intact basaltic clasts were observed and all clasts are crushed to some extent.
Mineral compositions and geochemistry: Host orthopyroxene, Fs48.967.5Wo2.24.3 (FeO/MnO = 56); exsolution lamellae, Fs24.441.4Wo12.332.9 (FeO/MnO = 60). Anorthositic norite orthopyroxene = Fs35.4Wo4.3 and plagioclase is An96.5. Anorthositic troctolite olivine = Fa28.1 (FeO/MnO = 105); pigeonite = Fs26.9Wo5.9 (FeO/MnO = 54); plagioclase = An97 and chromite Cr/(Cr+Al) = 0.80. Kamacite has a mean Ni content of 6.2 wt. % and 0.77 wt. % Co and taenite has a Ni compositional range of 8.2 to 23.6 wt. %.
Bulk composition (R. Korotev, WUSL): 7.0% FeO, 290 ppm Ni, 3.4 ppm Sm, 12 ppb Ir, 1.5 ppm Th.
Classification: Lunar (feldspathic breccia).
Type specimen: A total of 20.3 g is on deposit at NAU. The main mass holder is anonymous.
Morocco, near Algerian border
Found 1999 October
Lunar meteorite (olivine-pyroxene basalt)
History: A stone of ~300 g was found in the desert.
Classification and mineralogy (T. Fagan, UHAW; T. Bunch and J. Wittke, NAU): olivine, pyroxene, and chromite phenocrysts occur in a groundmass of elongate, zoned pyroxene (En1-25Wo15-25) and feldspar (~An85) crystals radiating from common nucleation sites; opaque phases include elongate, skeletal ilmenite, troilite, and trace metal; olivine phenocrysts (~12 vol. %) up to 300 μm are zoned from Fo65 (cores) to Fo60 (rims) and commonly
have chromite inclusions; pyroxene phenocrysts (~5 vol. %) are complexly zoned, with En40-50Wo20-40 and En15-25Wo10-20 domains; both olivine and pyroxene phenocrysts surrounded by Fe-rich quenched margins (olivines, ~Fo30; pyroxenes, En5-25Wo15-30); glass with ~45.7 wt. % SiO2 occurs in semicontinuous shock veins up to 50 μm wide; some terrestrial weathering products are present in fractures, but primary assemblage is essentially unaltered.
Oxygen-isotopic compositions (R. Clayton, UChi): δ18O = +5.63 ‰, δ17O = +2.92 ‰.
Bulk composition (E. Jarosewich, SI): (in wt. %) SiO2 = 44.7 TiO2 = 3.08; Al2O3 = 8.74; FeO = 23.0; MnO = 0.33; MgO = 8.45; CaO = 10.9; Na2O = 0.37; K2O = 0.11; H2O = 0.06.
Specimens: type specimen, about 5-6 g, contact T. Bunch, NAU; 1.1 g plus thin section, UHaw; main mass, 260 g,
Radomsky.
References
T. J. Fagan, G. J. Taylor, K. Keil, T. E. Bunch, J. H. Wittke, R. L. Korotev, B. L. Jolliff, J. J. Gillis, L.A. Haskin, E. Jarosewich, R.N. Clayton, T. Mayeda, V. A. Fernandes, R. Burgess, G. Turner, O. Eugster & S. Lorenzetti, 2002, Northwest Africa 032: Product of Lunar Volcanism: Meteoritics and Planetary Science 37:371-394.
Western Sahara
Found 2000 September
Lunar meteorite (cumulate olivine gabbro with regolith breccia)
History: Three stones of 359 g, 224 g and 50 g, totaling 633 g were sold to Marvin Killgore (SWML) by nomads who showed him the place of find on a flat dry desert plain near Dchira, Western Sahara.
Mineralogy and classification (T. Fagan, UHaw, M. Killgore, SWML, J. Wittke and T. Bunch, NAU): consists of two distinct lithologies, cumulate rock and regolith breccia; shock stage, S2; weathering grade, W1. Cumulate portion: modes (vol. %) are olivine = 54.7, pigeonite = 24.2, augite = 5, feldspar (including minor K-feldspar) = 15.6, opaques (troilite, chromite, Fe-metal, ilmenite) = 0.5; olivine, Fa28-34, mean Fa31 (FeO/MnO = 99 ± 11 g/g); pigeonite, En64Wo11 (FeO/MnO = 53 ± 6 g/g); augite, En49Wo36 (FeO/MnO = 46 ± 6 g/g); plagioclase, An88-91; Ba-rich K-feldspar, An3Ab4Or93 with average BaO = 2.2 wt.%. Breccia portion: contains fragments of cumulate portion as well as silica glass, hedenbergitic pyroxene, volcanic rocks, and unusual lithic clasts with fayalite + Ba-rich K- feldspar + silica + plagioclase; olivine and pyroxene in the breccia have a slightly wider compositional range towards lower Mg/(Mg+Fe) than in the cumulate portion of the rock.
Chemical composition (D. Mittlefehldt, JSC): KREEP-rich with strong negative Eu-anomaly.
Noble gases (O. Eugster, Physikalisches Institut, Bern): high solar wind component, 4He/20Ne = 9, indicative of regolith material.
Specimens: type specimen, 15 g, NHM; main mass SWML.
References
TJ Fagan, GJ Taylor, K Keil, TL Hicks, M Killgore, TE Bunch, JH Wittke, DW Mittlefehldt, RN Clayton, TK Mayeda, O Eugster & S Lorenzetti, 2003, Northwest Africa 773: Lunar Origin, Iron-Enrichment Trend, and Brecciation: Meteoritics and Planetary Science 38:529-554.
TJ Fagan, K Keil, GJ Taylor, TL Hicks, M Killgore, TE Bunch, JH Wittke, O Eugster, S Lorenzetti, DW Mittlefehldt, RN Clayton & T Mayeda, 2001, New Lunar Meteorite Northwest Africa 773: Dual Origin by Cumulate Crystallization and Impact Brecciation: 64th Meeting of the Meteoritical Society: Abstracts, no. 5149.
Morocco
Purchased 2004
Lunar meteorite (cumulate olivine gabbro with regolith breccia)
History: A light green to dark complete stone of 31.7 g was purchased in Erfoud, Morocco, in November 2004.
Petrography and Geochemistry: (T. Bunch and J. Wittke, NAU) The specimen consists of olivine gabbro and regolith breccia lithologies. The cumulate olivine gabbro contains ~50 vol% olivine (Fa29.334.7; FeO/MnO = 94), pigeonite (Fs2228.3Wo5.610; FeO/MnO = 52), augite (Fs13.2Wo38.5), plagioclase and minor maskelynite (An89), Ba-rich alkali feldspar (Or92An4; BaO = 8.9 wt%), Cr-spinel, ilmenite, phosphate, and troilite. The breccia
lithology is dominated by small olivine gabbro fragments and also contains subvariolitic basalt clasts with zoned pyroxenes (Fs44Wo29 to Fs58Wo23; FeO/MnO = 57); plagioclase (An90); ilmenite, and Fe-rich, low-Ca pyroxene (Fs80.8Wo14); symplectites of fayalite (Fa91); hedenbergite (Fs60.3Wo32.7); silica; clear to yellow glass spherules; agglutinates, high silica fayalitic rocks (Fa95.6); ulvφspinel; K2O-rich glass (K2O = 8.8; SiO2 = 77 [both wt%]), and pure SiO2.
Classification: Achondrite (lunar, olivine gabbro with regolith breccia) where the olivine gabbro is moderately shocked and minimally weathered. Note: This sample may be paired with NWA 773.
Specimens: A 6.8 g type specimen and two thin sections are on deposit at NAU. An anonymous finder holds the main mass.
Morocco or Algeria
Purchased 2005 June/July
Achondrite (lunar, mare basalt/gabbro breccia)
History: Four stones of 30.6 g, 11.6 g, 64 g, and 85 g were purchased from Moroccan dealers in Erfoud for a consortium of North
American collectors in June and July of 2005.
Petrography and Geochemistry: (T. Bunch and J. Wittke, NAU; A. Irving and S. Kuehner, UWS; R. Korotev, WUSL) All stones are very similar and consist of clast-dominated polymict breccias composed of >80 vol% olivine-phyric basalt and gabbroic/diabasic clasts (0.2 cm to several cm across) within a finer breccia matrix. The basalt clasts show a wide range in mineral compositions, but all contain phenocrysts of olivine (Fa2899; FeO/MnO = 98.9) and some also have phenocrysts of pyroxferroite or chromite all in a fine-grained matrix consisting of intergrown pigeonite, pyroxferroite, K-Ba feldspar, ilmenite, merrillite, baddeleyite, troilite, silica, and glass. The gabbroic clasts range in texture from coarser-grained (>3 mm) hypidiomorphic gabbro to finer-grained (~1 mm) diabasic clasts. Both types of gabbroic lithologies consist mainly of pigeonite (Fs23.331.3Wo8.711.5; FeO/MnO = 6069) and subhedral to anhedral olivine (Fa34.141; FeO/MnO = 8599) with less abundant augite (Fs24.147.5Wo24.432.1) and partly maskelite, blocky to tabular plagioclase (An8194). The breccia
matrix consists mainly of gabbroic debris with fragments of basalt, silica polymorph, symplectites, subparallel intergrowths of anorthite + pyroxferroite + ilmenite and shock-melted material.
Bulk compositions (R. Korotev, WUSL): INAA of 11 subsamples show that they vary considerably in bulk composition, with
the most Fe-rich subsample nearly indistinguishable from NWA 3160 basalt. All other subsamples are compositionally equivalent to mixtures of NWA 3160 basalt and the regolith breccia lithology of NWA 773, but with slightly lower concentrations of incompatible elements. Note: Based on petrography, mineral compositions, and bulk compositions, these stones are paired with NWA 3160 and may be paired with NWA 773.
Classification: Achondrite (lunar, mare basalt/gabbro breccia).
Specimens: A 20.2 g type specimen and two polished thin sections are on deposit at NAU. A 0.5 g type specimen is on
deposit at WUSL. Oakes, Reed, Boswell, and Turecki hold the main masses.
Reference
Bunch, T. E., Wittke, J. H., Korotev, R. L. and Irving, A. J. (2006) Lunar Planet. Sci. XXXVII, #1375.
Morocco or Algeria
Purchased 2005 November
Achondrite (lunar, gabbro)
History: A single minimally weathered fusion-encrusted stone of 233 g was purchased from a Moroccan dealer in Tagounite, Morocco, by M. Farmer in November 2005.
Petrography and Geochemistry: (J. Wittke and T. Bunch, NAU; A. Irving, UWS) The specimen consists of a single yellow-green, relatively coarse-grained rock traversed by thin, black glass-rich veins. It is an olivine-rich, two pyroxene cumulate gabbro composed of olivine (Fa31.7; FeO/MnO = 96; 52 vol. %), (Fs26.6Wo6.7; 23 vol%), augite (Fs16.2Wo29; 9 vol. %), and plagioclase (An56; 14 vol. %) with minor amounts of Ba-K feldspar, chromite, ilmenite,
andmerrillite. Larger pigeonite grains commonly enclose equant olivine grains, which contain abundant melt inclusions (0.0250.125 mm). Plagioclase is partially converted to maskelynite, and pyroxenes and olivine exhibit shock lamellae and undulatory extinction. Note: This specimen is identical in texture and mineral composition to the gabbro clasts in NWA 773 and NWA 2700 and thus appears to be paired with those breccia specimens.
Classification: Achondrite (lunar, gabbro); minimal weathering.
Specimens: A 20.1 g type specimen and one polished thin section are on deposit at NAU. A 0.5 g specimen is on deposit at WUSL. An anonymous owner holds the main mass.
Reference
Bunch, T. E., Wittke, J. H., Korotev, R. L. and Irving, A. J. (2006) Lunar Planet. Sci. XXXVII, #1375.