Is it a chondrite?

okstone

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Apr 19, 2020
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It was found in Gobi, Xinjiang, China, with a mass of 46g and can be weakly attracted by magnets. Is it a chondrite?I would be grateful.

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Red-Coat

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All I could say is that it doesn't have a typical appearance for a chondrite. The rounded blobs are intermixed with others having a very angular outline. Not a typical appearance, even for a brecciated chondrite. The vast majority of chondrites are moderately to strongly magnetic and often you can see small metallic flecks. Those with low magnetism, are far less common and it's also rather unlike a carbonaceous chondrite.
 

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okstone

okstone

Jr. Member
Apr 19, 2020
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Primary Interest:
Other
All I could say is that it doesn't have a typical appearance for a chondrite. The rounded blobs are intermixed with others having a very angular outline. Not a typical appearance, even for a brecciated chondrite. The vast majority of chondrites are moderately to strongly magnetic and often you can see small metallic flecks. Those with low magnetism, are far less common and it's also rather unlike a carbonaceous chondrite.

Thank you,Red-Coat,I use a simple reflection light microscope to observe the section, and see some silver white highlights, as shown in the following picture, but I am not sure whether it is iron nickel metal or not (the magnification is 500 times, and the observed size is mostly within 1mm). Maybe these silver white metallic highlights are the source of magnetism.
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Red-Coat

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Excellent pictures, and very helpful.

For the question "could the silvery-white blobs be the source of the magnetism?" then the answer is "yes, they could" but it's not the only possibility. And even if they are, this doesn't mean you have a meteorite. For the question "is this a chondrite?" my answer would still be that the general appearance is not typical for a chondritic meteorite and your great pictures only serve to underline that there are no apparent features with the characteristic rounded appearance of chondrules.
 

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okstone

okstone

Jr. Member
Apr 19, 2020
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Primary Interest:
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Excellent pictures, and very helpful.

For the question "could the silvery-white blobs be the source of the magnetism?" then the answer is "yes, they could" but it's not the only possibility. And even if they are, this doesn't mean you have a meteorite. For the question "is this a chondrite?" my answer would still be that the general appearance is not typical for a chondritic meteorite and your great pictures only serve to underline that there are no apparent features with the characteristic rounded appearance of chondrules.



Your answer is very precise, I like it very much. I studied mining when I was in school, but my knowledge is very limited. Thank you again. Whether it's a meteorite or not, I learned a lot from you.
 

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