Northwest Africa 12769 (NWA 12769)

Morocco

Purchased: January 2019

Classification: Iron meteorite (IVB)

History: A single 349 g stone purchased from a dealer in Zagora in January 2019.

Physical characteristics: The main mass is roughly shield-shaped, 7.5 × 3 cm across and 2 cm thick. The exterior surface is mottled red-brown to dark brown, with rusty red spots.

Petrography: (C. Herd, L. Tunney, and R. Bukatiuk, UAb) Optical and SEM examination of a 1.5 × 2.5 cm polished and etched slice, show extremely fine (~5 μm) intergrowths of kamacite and taenite, with ~20 × 50 μm lozenge-shaped inclusions of kamacite and schreibersite. Some areas of taenite are also present, ~50 μm across and up to a few hundred μm long.

Geochemistry: (C. Herd and L. Tunney, UAb) ICP-MS data, using sample of North Chile (Filomena) as standard: Ni = 17.5, Co = 0.79 (both wt%); Ir = 15.1, Ga <0.5, Ge <2.6, As = 1.6, W = 3.0, Re = 1.4, Os = 1.9, Pd = 9.6, Pt = 30.2, Cu = 7.5, Au <0.8 (all µg/g).

Classification: Iron, IVB, ataxite

Specimens: Type specimen of 21.7 g at UAb. Main mass with Kuntz.