¹Addi Bischoff et al. (>10)
Meteoritics & Planetary Science (in Press) Open Access Link to Article [https://doi.org/10.1111/maps.70060]
¹Institut für Planetologie, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons

On October 24, 2024, an impressive fireball was visible over Austria. After the possible strewn field was calculated, the first sample of the Haag meteorite, with a mass of 8.76 g, was discovered on November 2, 2024, 8 days after the fireball event. Four more samples were found afterward putting the total sample mass at about 151 g. Short-lived radionuclides were measured shortly after recovery on a small sample, which was also used for almost all analyses presented here. Results confirm that the Haag meteorite derived from the bolide fireball event. Haag is a severely fragmented ordinary chondrite breccia and consists of typical equilibrated and recrystallized lithologies (LL4-6) as well as impact-related lithic clasts, such as dark, fine-grained impact breccias. Most fragments are highly recrystallized (type 6), but some show a well-preserved chondritic texture, which is of petrologic type 4 since the olivines are equilibrated. The olivines in the bulk rock have Fa contents of 29.5 ± 0.5 mol%, whereas the low-Ca pyroxenes have compositions of Fs23.9±1.4Wo1.6±0.7 with slightly variable Fs contents up to 28 mol%. However, the occurrence of type 3 fragments in other parts of the rock cannot completely be ruled out. Many clasts are moderately shocked (S4; C-S4). Using the fragment with the lowest degree of shock to determine the bulk rock’s shock degree, Haag has an overall shock degree of S2 (C-S2). The LL chondrite classification is also supported by O isotope data, the results of bulk chemical analysis, and the physical properties of density and magnetic susceptibility. The nucleosynthetic Ti and Cr isotope data confirm that Haag is an ordinary chondrite, related to the noncarbonaceous (NC) meteorites. Haag does not contain detectable amounts of solar wind-implanted noble gases, and we rule out any substantial exposure at the direct surface of the parent body. Based on noble gases, Haag has an exposure age of 21–24 Ma and a pre-atmospheric meteoroid radius of 20–85 cm with a sample depth between 4 and 5 cm below the meteoroid surface, consistent with constraints from cosmogenic radionuclides. The soluble organic compositions of Haag are consistent with the profiles of the Stubenberg (LL6) breccia and show characteristics consistent with the complex shock, brecciation, and lithification history of the breccia. Haag and Stubenberg fell near each other (110 km away) within just 8 years. Since only 8.5% (about 110) of meteorite falls worldwide are LL chondrites, it is remarkable that two LL chondrites fell near each other in such a short time.

¹I. Baziotis,^2,3L. Ferrière,⁴C. Ma,⁴J. Hu,⁵D. Palles,⁴P. D. Asimow
Meteoritics & Planetary Science (in Press) Open Access Link to Article [https://doi.org/10.1111/maps.70054]
¹Department of Natural Resources Management and Agricultural Engineering, Agricultural University of Athens, Athens, Greece
²Natural History Museum Vienna, Vienna, Austria
³Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
⁴Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California, USA
⁵Theoretical & Physical Chemistry Institute, National Hellenic Research Foundation, Athens, Greece
Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons

We report new results from a study of shock-related features in the L6 ordinary chondrites Northwest Africa (NWA) 4672 and NWA 12841. Our observations confirm the occurrence of eight high-pressure (HP) minerals in each meteorite, namely, ringwoodite, majorite, akimotoite, wadsleyite, albitic jadeite, lingunite, tuite, and xieite. Based on the calibration of phase stability fields and majorite chemical variations from static experiments, we estimate peak shock conditions of 18–23 GPa and 1800–2100°C. However, both meteorites also contain minerals thought to record lower pressures, 14–18 GPa for wadsleyite, and possibly ~11.5 GPa for albitic jadeite. These are interpreted to have formed by cooling during partial release from the peak shock state. Although the presence of discrete shock melt veins demands spatial heterogeneity in the temperature field, we interpret the record of HP mineralogy in terms of temporal rather than spatial variation in pressure–temperature conditions during the shock and release event. Specifically, we infer that the cooling of shock melt veins to their liquidus occurred near peak pressure, whereas decompression began before the melt veins reached their solidus. NWA 4672 and NWA 12841 also display dense networks of shock melt veins, metal–sulfide segregations, and dark shock zones, implying a high density of pre-existing weak zones and, thus, a high likelihood of fragmentation during atmospheric entry. A comparison with the Suizhou L6 chondrite, in which a total of 26 HP phases have been identified, suggests that differences in the identification and number of observed HP polymorphs mostly reflect differences in the completeness and spatial scale of analytical studies rather than a true difference in the intensity of shock processing. It remains quite likely that many shocked L chondrites host more HP phases than have been recognized so far. These new results indicate a need for further high-resolution studies of L chondrites to distinguish between observational bias and true variations in the range of shock states they experienced.