Burdett meteorite, Pawnee Co., Kansas, USA

Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):	38° 13' 59'' North , 99° 31' 59'' West
Latitude & Longitude (decimal):	38.23333,-99.53333
Non-native locality type:	Meteorite
Köppen climate type:	Cfa : Humid subtropical climate

Ordinary chondrite, veined (H5)
Find, 1940; 8.6 kg

A weathered meteoritic stone covered with a deep brown crust was recognized as a meteorite after having lain in a barnyard for ~17 years. Grayish brown, often indistinct chondrules and usually irregular grains of troilite and Fe-Ni metal are dispersed within a dark gray matrix. Olivine and orthopyroxene crystals (≤ 1 mm, ≤ 0.5 mm, resp.) occur as large subhedral grains and as granular matrix. Twinned orthopyroxene grains [inverted clinopyroxene] account for ~20 % of orthopyroxene. Smaller grains of diopsidic clinopyroxene are present as well as some unusually chromite-rich chondrules. Compositionally, bulk iron contents (26.42 wt% Fe), equilibrated olivine (Fa18), low Ca-orthopyroxene (Fs15.3), and moderately recrystallized matrix are characteristic of H5 chondrites. Overall mineralogy is characterized by dominant olivine and accompanying orthopyroxene along with minor plagioclase, Fe-Ni metal, and troilite. Accessory chromite and diopside plus smaller amounts of several opaques (copper, ilmenite, and isocubanite) are reported. A few tiny phosphate grains (merrillite [≤ 50 mm diameter] and lesser chlorapatite) have also been reported.

A U-He age of ~3.71 Ga is reported, possibly indicative of a major collision involving an intermediate parent body (IPB) subsequent to the original formation of a putative H-chondrite parent body.

Mineral List

10 valid minerals.

References

External Links