Pleşcoi        45°16'30"N, 26°42'35"E

Pleşcoi Village, Berca Commune, Buzău Co, Romania

Fell: 12 June 2008, 21:45 h local time EEST (UT+3)

Classification: Ordinary chondrite (L5/6)

History: On 12 June, 2008, a bolide was observed by eyewitnesses from 6 counties in south Romania (along about 325 km distance); locally it was accompanied by sonic booms. The fireball was white green, very brilliant and it crossed the skies along a W-E trajectory, at an angular height of 35-40º above the horizon (eyewitnesses reports on "Urbi et Orbi", author Valentin Ghincolov).

Physical characteristics: One mass (6.913 kg) of basic conical shape (20 × 19 × 11 cm) with a flat side was discovered by Mihail Popescu in his garden. The stone remained where it had landed for approximately 3 weeks. The specimen showed a dull, black, fusion crust (1 mm thick) with a thin network of cracks; only a a very small (about 2 × 1.5 cm) area of the light-gray breccia with metallic grains (<1 mm) was revealed. The flat surface exhibits some lighter-colored strips and parallel thread lines marked by molten drops.

Petrography: (Dana Pop, BBU; Gretchen Benedix, NHM): Chondrule outlines are obscure under the optical microscope, but more discernable in BSE images. Recognizable chondrule types include barred olivine and radiating pyroxene. The fusion crust is relatively thick. The matrix is fully recrystallized; brecciation is not obvious. Metal and troilite grains are relatively fresh, sometimes with thin weathering rims. Olivine exhibits undulatory extinction.

Geochemistry: Olivine (Fa_25.5±0.3; n = 56), low-Ca pyroxene (Fs_21.4±0.1; Wo_1.3±0.2; n = 34). Chromite (Cr/Cr + Al = 0.85; Fe/Fe + Mg = 0.86).

Classification: Ordinary chondrite (L5/6); S2, W1

Specimens: A 20 g sample, two thin sections and two thick sections are on deposit at BBU. One 49.95 g piece and one thin section are deposited at NHM. The main mass is with the finder of the stone (M. Popescu).