Here we are offering the spectacular, newly classified Martian meteorite NWA 2373. This martian achondrite has been provisionally classified as a basaltic shergottite and given the provisional name of NWA 2373. Unlike most picritic shergottites offered for sale these days, these are polished on one side in order to reveal the interior petrology of these lovely specimens. This is a very expensive proposition for us as we lose quite a bit of the original mass, but we feel that this is the only way to properly prepare these specimens and our customers are the real winners. Analysis strongly suggests that NWA 2373 is probably paired with NWA 1068, which is reported as having the closest match to Mars Pathfinder soil and rock compostions (see below). Don't miss out on adding one of these beautiful specimens to your collection while they last!
To see the NWA 2373 main mass on the NASA-Jet Propulsion Lab website click Here
Classification Data NWA 2373
Northwest Africa
Purchased 2004 August
Martian (basaltic shergottite)
Small stones having a total weight of 18.1 g were purchased in Erfoud Morocco. Yellow brown with desert ablation/varnish surface only, no fusion crust. Description and provisional classification (T. Bunch and J. Wittke, NAU): olivine phenocrysts (<1.25 mm in longest dimension) set in a fine-grained groundmass (<0.1 mm) of pigeonite, maskelynite, chromite, Ti-magnetite, augite, chlorapatite and sulfide. Olivine has cores of Fa30.7 FeO/MnO =51.9 and rims of Fa50.3, FeO/MnO = 53.3 and contains micron to submicron inclusions of chromite, glass, and barite. In thin section, one large olivine grain, which may be a xenocryst, is different from the rest with a core of Fa29.1, FeO/MnO = 43 and more tiny inclusions. A wide (0.2 to 0.4 mm), inclusion-free mantle on this grain is Fa32.3, FeO/MnO = 39.2. Pigeonite is zoned from Fs29.4Wo8.4 to Fs36.4 Wo14.1, FeO/MnO = 28; augite is Fs21.8 Wo29.1. Maskelynite is slightly zoned with a compositional average of An52.1Or2.1. Chromite, cr# = 87, fe# = 90.4. Overall texture, mineral content, and mineral compositions strongly suggest that this stone is paired with NWA 1068. Specimens: type specimen, and one thin section, NAU; main mass, Birdsell.
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