Description
35.70g slice. EL-melt rock. It is a fossil chondrite. In 2024, a new study was published indicating Al Haggounia 001 may be a very unique enstatite chondrite : https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/maps.14119
The magnetic susceptibility of Al Haggounia 001 (4.39 ± 0.20) is much lower than that of usual EH (5.48 ± 0.16) and EL (5.46 ± 0.04) chondrites but is in the range of E finds (5.05 ± 0.43). Al Haggounia 001 is an anomalous meteorite with a polymict nature. It records multiple events revealing its unique origin which expends the groups of enstatite chondrites and provides insights into the complex formation and evolution history of their parent body.
Al Haggounia 001 N27°30′,W12°30′
Al Haggounia, Morocco
Find: 2006
Achondrite (aubrite)
History: Several tons of this material have been found on the ground or by digging near Al Haggounia, Morocco (Chennaoui et al. 2007) for description of the strewn field) and sold to several dealers. The coordinates are given for the center of the strewn field, which extends ~ 40 km.
Physical characteristics: It is impossible to assess precisely the amount of material already (and to be) recovered, but according to dealers, collectors, and Jambon it is about 3 metric tons composing many samples of varied sizes (from a few g to 50 kg). The largest stones were recovered after excavating them from the ground. The outer surface is rusty brown due to severe alteration. Looks like a sedimentary breccia cemented by iron oxide and carbonate. Color changes from bluish gray to rusty brown closest to the fractures are observed. Yellow patches of sulfur (alteration) are widespread. The rocks are significantly porous with pore sizes from several cm to hundreds of microns.
Petrography: (A. Jambon, O. Boudouma and D. Badia. UPVI) Dominated by enstatite and plagioclase. Troilite, graphite daubreelite, oldhamite, kamacite rich in Si and schreibersite are present.
Mineral compositions: Enstatite (En98Fs1Wo1) and plagioclase (Ab78An16Or5).
Classification: Achondrite (aubrite); extensive weathering. Similar to and likely paired with NWA 002, 1067, 2736, 2828, 2965.
Type specimens: A total of 50 g of sample and three polished sections are on deposit at UPVI.
Main masses: Beroud, 3886 g (26 pieces from 1185 g to 5.8 g); PThomas, 4497 g (33 pieces from 11 to 1507 g); Hmani, about 500 kg; Ouzrou, about 500 kg.
Writeup from MB 108:
Al Haggounia 001: reclassification
Rubin (2016) reclassified Al Haggounia 001 and paired specimens as “vesicular, incompletely melted, EL chondrite impact melt rock[s].”
