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The Kaidun meteorite: Mineralogy of an unusual CM1 lithology
Author(s) -
ZOLENSKY Michael E.,
IVANOV Andrei V.,
YANG S. Vincent,
MITTLEFEHLDT David W.,
OHSUMI Kazumasa
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
meteoritics and planetary science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.09
H-Index - 100
eISSN - 1945-5100
pISSN - 1086-9379
DOI - 10.1111/j.1945-5100.1996.tb02090.x
Subject(s) - meteorite , breccia , geology , enstatite , geochemistry , chondrite , lithology , parent body , silicate , pentlandite , mineralogy , pyroxene , carbonate , clastic rock , olivine , astrobiology , pyrrhotite , sedimentary rock , chemistry , pyrite , physics , organic chemistry
Kaidun is a breccia of disparate enstatite and carbonaceous chondrite clasts that continues to provide real surprises. Many Kaidun clasts have been intensely altered by aqueous fluids, as evidenced by the widespread occurrence of ferromagnesian phyllosilicates and by the presence of carbonate‐ and phyllo‐silicate‐filled veins. In this report, we describe an unusual CM lithology containing many mineralogical features not previously reported from any meteorite, including pyrrhotite, with exclusive needlelike morphologies and thick mantles of phyllosilicate, and complex aggregates of phyllosilicate, melanite garnet, crosscut by pentlandite veins. The latter features appear to be due in large part to extensive hydrothermal alteration at temperatures on the order of 450 °C, which is significantly higher than that attained during secondary processing from other known CM material.