Northwest Africa 14127 (NWA 14127)

(Northwest Africa)

Purchased: 2021 May

Classification: Martian meteorite (Shergottite)

History: The meteorite was purchased from a group of meteorites hunters in Nouadhibou, Mauritania in May, 2021.

Physical characteristics: Nine dark greenish fragments without fusion crust.

Petrography: The meteorite shows a porphyritic texure of up to 1 mm sized compositionally zoned olivine phenocrysts set in a groundmass of dominantly pyroxene and maskelynite. Pyroxenes typically have pigeonitic cores and augitic rims. Olivine phenocrysts often clump together and frequently contain magmatic inclusions with radial cracks extending into the host crystals. Maskelynite is found primarily as acicular laths. Minor phases are small homogeneous olivine, titanomagnetite, ilmenite, and troilite. The meteorite is highly shocked and contains shock melt veins and pockets. Secondary calcite and barite are present.

Geochemistry: olivine phenocrysts: Fa_41.9±7.8 (Fa_31.6-52.5, FeO/MnO=47±2, n=7); small olivine: Fa_57.8±0.1, FeO/MnO=46±1, n=3; zoned pyroxene: Fs_29.5±7.9Wo_17.8±11.1 (Fs_17.9-38.4Wo_7.1-37.7, FeO/MnO=28±3, n=15); maskelynite: An_49.4±38Ab_46.9±2.7Or_3.7±2.1 (An_44.1-53.5Ab_42.6-49.9Or_0.3-6.3, n=8)

Classification: Martian; olivine-phyric shergottite