Northwest Africa 11606 (NWA 11606)

Algeria

Purchased: 2016 May 1

Classification: HED achondrite (Howardite)

History: Purchased by Miao Bing-an in 2016 in Morocco.

Physical characteristics: The medium-gray matrix contains a variety of clasts and fusion crust is not found in this small sample.

Petrography (L. Huang, B. Miao, H. Chen, GUT): Breccia containing a variety of eucrite lithologies with ~20%-40 vol% diogenite lithologies. Basaltic eucrite lithologies mostly have subophitic texture. The texture of cumulate eucrite lithologies is equigranular with subequal amounts of pyroxene and plagioclase grains. Diogenites lithologies are mostly orthopyroxene. The matrices are mostly basaltic detritus. A higher C content chondritic clast (carbonaceous chondrite) was found in this section. Accessories are silica, ilmenite, chromite, troilite.

Geochemistry (L. Huang, B. Miao, H. Chen, GUT): Bulk pyroxene: Fe/Mn=30.1; Orthopyroxene of diogenite lithologies: median compositions are Mg#=65.0, Fs_34.2Wo_2.4 (n=12). Low-Ca pyroxene of cumulate eucrite lithologies: median compositions are Mg#=46.2, Fs_53.1Wo_1.3 (n=8). Low-Ca pyroxene of basaltic eucrite lithologies: median compositions are Mg#=36.3, Fs_61.9Wo_2.9 (n=15). High-Ca pyroxene of basaltic eucrite lithologies: median compositions are Mg#=51.8, Fs_27.6Wo_42.7 (n=8). Plagioclase: median An_90.5Or_0.4 (n=10).

Classification: Polymict brecciated howardite

Specimens: 1.3 g and polished thin section are deposited in GUT