Baja California        28°N, 113°W

Baja California, Mexico

Find: before July 2017

Classification: Iron meteorite (IIIAB)

History: (D. Hill, UAz) One meteorite specimen was found by Mr. Aguilar (date unknown) near a ranch 70 km east of Guerrero Negro, Baja California, Mexico, on a rocky mountain (probably near Rancho). Friends of the finder brought an endcut of the meteorite to the U. of Arizona for examination. It was eventually sold to a group of meteorite dealers in 2019.

Physical characteristics: Total mass of a single specimen is approximately 10 kg. Dimensions are 30.5 × 16 × 5 cm and tapers on one end. It is irregularly shaped and flat on one side. The meteorite’s unusual shape is defined by a 10 cm cavity where an inclusion melted and ablated away during atmospheric passage. The specimen exhibits an oxidized brown to black-brown, weathered fusion crust with pits up to 7 mm in diameter over the entire surface. There are some whitish and bluish paint spots on the exterior. The meteorite has deep regmaglypts and large rounded regions ranging from a few cm across to 11 cm diameter and 4 cm deep where inclusions probably melted and softened during entry through the atmosphere.

Petrography: (D. Hill, UAz) Widmansatten pattern exhibits kamacite with average bandwith of 1.48±0.48 mm; largest bands are 3 mm wide. Kamacite bands are stubby in length; up to 10 mm. Taenite is zoned with plessite interiors, most commonly comb plessite. Schreibersite tends to occur near pinched ends of taenite and as ribbons adjacent to taenite. Sulfides are present as 2 mm grains and complex, fine grained, spider-like regions containing kamacite, pentlandite, and schreibersite with nickel-bearing troilite as 10 μm raisin-like inclusions.

Geochemistry: Mineral compositions and geochemistry: (D. Hill, UAz): EMP data, kamacite: Fe = 92.47, Ni = 6.63; taenite: Fe = 63.77 Ni = 35.33 (all in %). Average composition: (N. Chabot, JHUAPL and R. Ash, UMD), LA-ICP-MS data (four laser tracks), Co = 4980±180, Cu = 180±30, Ga = 16.6±0.4, Ge = 37±1, As = 6.4±0.9, Ir = 0.238±0.028, Au = 0.72±0.03 (all in ppm). Distance, physical characteristics, and composition preclude pairing with Loreto (IIIAB), Mexico.

Classification: Iron, IIIAB. Coarse octahedrite.

Specimens: Type specimen: 311 g UAz