Mohave Mountains        34°40.177’N, 114°17.078’W

Arizona, United States

Find: 2016

Classification: Ordinary chondrite (L6)

History: During October 2016, Myke Steighler was searching for meteorites on the bajada of the Mohave Mountains northeast of Havasu Heights in northwestern Arizona. A 5.00 g fusion-crusted meteorite was found. Since then an additional 42 stones have been found ranging from 1 to 181.4 g, for a total mass of 613.15 g within a limited area surrounding the initial find.

Physical characteristics: All stones are similar looking, with well-developed black to olivine-green fusion crust. Broken surfaces are light-colored though some show minor orange staining. Cut surfaces are white to grey with even distribution of metal and troilite; only a few chondrules visible. No shock veins visible.

Petrography: (L. Garvie ASU) Dominantly recrystallized texture with chondrules difficult to recognize and largely integrated into the matrix. Largest chondrule (PO) to 2 mm, though most <1 mm. Fusion crust to 1-mm thick, well-developed, with an anastomosing network of Fe sulfide extending to 2-mm below the crust. Feldspar mostly >50 μm. Troilite single crystal, though a few show weakly developed shock lamellae. Native Cu is rare, to 50 μm, found within kamacite, and rarely at metal-troilite interface. Metal and troilite, both <2 mm across, scattered uniformly across the cut surfaces. Majority of kamacite with holly-leafed-shaped outlines. Metal grains dominated by single-crystal kamacite, showing weakly developed Neumann bands. A few scattered grains of taenite/tetrataenite and rounded grains with dark-etch plessitic cores. Accessory chromite, <100 μm, heavily fractured. Olivine grains show undulatory extinction and fractures, consistent with shock stage S2. Stones fresh, with only very minor signs of metal alteration consistent with W0/1.

Geochemistry: (L. Garvie ASU) Olivine Fa_24.7±0.3, FeO/MnO = 50.0±2.5, n=6; Low Ca-pyroxene Fs_20.9±0.1Wo_1.4±0.3, FeO/MnO=28.7±0.5, n=5.

Classification: Ordinary chondrite, L6, S2, W0/1.

Specimens: Ten stones for a total mass of 45.41 g at ASU. Rest with finder.