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Gourara 003
Basic information Name: Gourara 003
     This is an OFFICIAL meteorite name.
Abbreviation: There is no official abbreviation for this meteorite.
Observed fall: No
Year found: 2020
Country: Algeria
Mass:help 3.27 kg
Classification
  history:
Meteoritical Bulletin:  MB 109  (2020)  Eucrite-mmict
Recommended:  Eucrite-mmict    [explanation]

This is 1 of 276 approved meteorites classified as Eucrite-mmict.   [show all]
Search for other: Achondrites, Eucrites, and HED achondrites
Comments: Approved 19 Nov 2020
Revised 21 Dec 2020: Corrected mass
Writeuphelp
Writeup from MB 109:

Gourara 003        29°48.79’N, 2°56.66’E

Ghardaia, Algeria

Find: 2020

Classification: HED achondrite (Eucrite, monomict)

History: A single fusion-crusted broken stone weighing 3273 g was found by nomads in the desert outside the town of Hassi Gara, Algeria, in early 2020. Broken fragments were subsequently purchased from a Moroccan dealer in April and May 2020 by Oz Backman, Topher Spinnato, and Jason Bliss.

Physical characteristics: Fragments of the single broken stone display an extremely fresh, black glossy fusion crust. Certain fragments display radial flowlines, rollover lip, and regmaglypts. A slice of the interior reveals a brecciated sample with an assortment of light and dark clasts set in a finer-grained matrix.

Petrography: (D. Sheikh, FSU) Specimen is a monomict breccia consisting of eucrite lithic clasts exhibiting primarily diabasic textures (grain size 800 µm, up to 3 mm) set in a fine-grained clastic matrix of similar lithology with approximately 50% pyroxene, 45% plagioclase, 4% opaques, and 1% shock-melt veins. Mineral phases include pigeonite (most displaying exsolution lamellae of varying width; some inverted to orthopyroxene), augite (some exsolved from pigeonite), orthopyroxene, calcic plagioclase (display both polysynthetic and carlsbad twinning under cross-polarized light), ilmenite, chromite (some Ti-rich), and SiO2-rich glass.

Geochemistry: Orthopyroxene (Fs51.5±1.9Wo4.9±0.7, range Fs48.5-55.0Wo3.6-5.7, FeO/MnO = 31±4, n=15), Pigeonite (Fs50.7±1.3Wo7.4±1.2, range Fs47.9-53.3Wo6.1-10.8, FeO/MnO = 32±4, n=26), Augite (Fs27.7±3.4Wo37.7±4.6, range Fs21.3-33.9Wo27.1-42.3, FeO/MnO = 28±4, n=8), Calcic Plagioclase (An91.6±1.2, range An88.7-94.2, n=42).

Classification: HED Achondrite (Eucrite, monomict breccia).

Specimens: 20.21 g at UNM; 430 g with Oz Backman; 2714 g with Topher Spinnato; 129 g with Jason Bliss.

Data from:
  MB109
  Table 0
  Line 0:
State/Prov/County:Ghardaia
Date:2020
Latitude:29°48.79'N
Longitude:2°56.66'E
Mass (g):3273
Pieces:1
Class:Eucrite-mmict
Shock stage:moderate
Weathering grade:low
Ferrosilite (mol%):51.5±1.9, 50.7±1.3, 27.7±3.4
Wollastonite (mol%):4.9±0.7, 7.4±1.2, 37.7±4.6
Magnetic suscept.:3.02
Classifier:D. Sheikh, FSU
Type spec mass (g):20.21
Type spec location:UNM
Main mass:Backman and Spinnato
Comments:Submitted by Daniel Sheikh
Institutions
   and collections
UNM: Institute of Meteoritics MSC03 2050 University of New Mexico Albuquerque NM 87131-1126 USA, United States; Website (institutional address; updated 12 Feb 2015)
FSU: Department of Geological Sciences, Florida State University, Tallahassee FL 32306-4100, United States (institutional address; updated 16 Dec 2010)
Catalogs:
References: Published in Meteoritical Bulletin, no. 109, in preparation (2020)
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Photos:
CreditPhotos
Photos uploaded by members of the Encyclopedia of Meteorites.
    (Caution, these are of unknown reliability)
Domjan Svilkovic   
Public domain photographs:
Daniel Sheikh         
Geography:

Algeria
Coordinates:
     Recommended::   (29° 48' 47"N, 2° 56' 40"E)

Statistics:
     This is 1 of 11 approved meteorites from Ghardaia, Algeria
     This is 1 of 1336 approved meteorites from Algeria (plus 30 unapproved names) (plus 4 impact craters)
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