[meteorite-list] Meteorite identification

From: Frank Cressy <fcressy_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 09:47:14 2004
Message-ID: <002601c177d4$8701d1a0$f42cff3f_at_pavilion>

> Crystal habit is a big discriminant -- if you see crystal faces
> (e.g. quartz, garnet, mica), you're done. (The exception would
> be crystalline nickel/iron in an octahedrite.)

Hello all,
As in everything there are exceptions, so don't write off a potential
meteorite just because of the presence of crystals. The new angrite,
D'Orbigny, has beautiful druses (ie crystal-filled vugs) of euhedral
pyroxene crystals. I believe the druses are at least up to a cm or more in
diameter and the crystals themselves are up to several mm long. Really cool.
And don't forget the diogenites like Bilanga and Tatahouine. They appear to
be entirely composed of large crystals. IfTatahouine were not a witnessed
fall, I think most of us would certainly leave the small broken hypersthene
crystal masses in the field, believing them to be terrestrial!
Of course quartz crystals are another matter ;-)
Regards,
Frank
Received on Wed 28 Nov 2001 01:18:40 AM PST