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Lunar Meteorite: LaPaz Icefield (LAP) 02205, 02224, 02226, 02436, 03632, & 04841 (paired stones)

Antarctica 

LAP 02205 is the first lunar meteorite in the U.S. Antarctic collection to be a crystalline mare basalt. The meteorite is almost entirely covered by fusion crust.
  

Four sides of the meteorite. Note the flow lines in the fusion crust of the north face (upper left) and the regmaglypts on the south and west faces. (Thanks to Kathleen, Terry, & Cecilia for the photos.)

  
LAP 02205 in the field
A chip of LAP 04841 in the lab
(Click on image for enlargement.)

Also see photos of LAP 02224, 02226, 02436, and 03632, and 04841
  
Listed in The Meteoritical Bulletin, No. 88, Meteoritics & Planetary Science 39, A215-A272 (2004)

from Antarctic Meteorite Newsletter, vol. 26, No. 2, 2003

LAP 02205

Location: LaPaz Ice Field
Dimensions (cm): 10.0 x 8.5 x 5.5
Weight (g): 1226.300

Meteorite Type: Lunar-Basalt

Macroscopic Description: Kathleen McBride

95% of the exterior surface has black fusion crust. Small areas of material have been plucked out. The fusion crust exhibits a slight ropy texture with polygonal fractures. The interior consists of interlocking tan and white coarse-grained minerals. There are numerous criss-crossing fractures filled with black glass.

Thin Section (,6) Description: Tim McCoy, Linda Welzenbach

The section consists of coarse-grained unbrecciated basalt with elongate pyroxene (up to 0.5 mm) and plagioclase laths (up to 1 mm) (~60:40 px:plag), rare phenocrysts of olivine (up to 1 mm) and interstitial oxides and late-stage mesostasis. Shock effects include undulatory extinction in pyroxene and shock melt veins and pockets. Microprobe analyses reveal pigeonite to augite of Fs26-80Wo14-36, plagioclase is An85-90Or0-1 and a single olivine phenocryst is Fa50. The Fe/Mn ratio in the pyroxenes averages ~60. The meteorite is a lunar olivine-bearing basalt.

Oxygen Isotope Analysis: T.K. Mayeda and R.N. Clayton

Our analysis for LAP 02205 gives: d 18O = +5.6 and d 17O = +2.7. This is consistent with a lunar basalt.
  
Listed in The Meteoritical Bulletin, No. 88, Meteoritics & Planetary Science 39, A215-A272 (2004)

from Antarctic Meteorite Newsletter, vol. 27, No. 1, 2004

LAP 02224, LAP 02226, & LAP 02436

Location: LaPaz Ice Field
Dimensions (cm): 5.0 x 5.0 x 4.0, 6.0 x 6.0 x 3.5, & 5.5 x 4.25 x 2.25
Weight (g): 252.5, 244.1, & 58.970

Meteorite Type: Lunar-Basalt

Macroscopic Description: Kathleen McBride

50-90% of these lunar meteorite exteriors are covered with shiny, black, striated fusion crust. The interior has a granular texture with interconnected linear mineral grains, black, white and brown in color. There are criss-crossing fractures that are filled with black glass.

Thin Section (,4, ,6, and ,4) Description: Tim McCoy, Linda Welzenbach

These sections consist of a coarse-grained unbrecciated basalt with elongate pyroxene (up to 0.5 mm) and plagioclase laths (up to 1 mm) (~60:40 px:plag), rare phenocrysts of olivine (up to 1 mm) and interstitial oxides and late-stage mesostasis. Shock effects include undulatory extinction in pyroxene and shock melt veins and pockets. Microprobe analyses reveal pigeonite to augite of Fs20-80Wo10-36, plagioclase is An85-90Or0-1 and a single olivine phenocryst is Fa35. The Fe/Mn ratio in the pyroxenes averages ~60. The meteorites are lunar olivine-bearing basalt. These are almost certainly paired with LAP 02205.
  
listed in The Meteoritical Bulletin, no. 89, Meteoritics & Planetary Science 40, A201-A263 (2005)

from Antarctic Meteorite Newsletter, vol. 27, No. 3, 2004

LAP 03632

Location: LaPaz Ice Field
Dimensions (cm): 5.5 x 3.5 x 3.0
Weight (g): 92.566

Meteorite Type: Lunar-Basalt

Macroscopic Description: Kathleen McBride

~75% of the exterior has shiny black fusion crust. The interior is pinkish-tan with white linear minerals and glass veins. This sample is paired with the LAP samples from the '02 season.

Thin Section (,2) Description: Tim McCoy, Linda Welzenbach

The section consists of a coarse-grained unbrecciated basalt with elongate pyroxene (up to 0.5 mm) and plagioclase laths (up to 1 mm) (~60:40 px:plag), rare phenocrysts of olivine (up to 1 mm) and interstitial oxides and late-stage mesostasis. Shock effects include undulatory extinction in pyroxene and shock melt veins and pockets. Microprobe analyses reveal pigeonite to augite of Fs27-52Wo12-33, plagioclase is An87Or0-1 and a single olivine phenocryst is Fa32-99. The Fe/Mn ratio in the pyroxenes averages ~60. The meteorite is a lunar olivine-bearing basalt and is almost certainly paired with LAP 02205, LAP 02226, LAP 02224 and LAP 02436.

from Antarctic Meteorite Newsletter, vol. 29, No. 2, 2006

LAP 04841

Location: LaPaz Ice Field
Dimensions (cm): 5.0 x 2.5 x 2.5
Weight (g): 55.992

Meteorite Type: Lunar-Basalt

Macroscopic Description: Kathleen McBride

Dull, black fusion crust covers over 50% of the exterior. Some surfaces have shiny areas. The interior is a pinkish tan and white matrix with black glass filled veins.

Thin Section (,2) Description: Valerie Reynolds, Tim McCoy and Linda Welzenbach

The meteorite is almost certainly paired with the LAP 02205 pairing group. LAP 02205 was described as follows: The section consists of coarse-grained unbrecciated basalt with elongate pyroxene (up to 0.5 mm) and plagioclase laths (up to 1 mm) (~60:40 px:plag), rare phenocrysts of olivine (up to 1 mm) and interstitial oxides and late-stage mesostasis. Shock effects include undulatory extinction in pyroxene and shock melt veins and pockets. Microprobe analyses reveal pigeonite to augite of Fs26-80Wo14-36, plagioclase is An85-90Or0-1 and a single olivine phenocryst is Fa50. The Fe/Mn ratio in the pyroxenes averages ~60. The meteorite is a lunar olivine-bearing basalt.

More Information

Antarctic Meteorite Newsletter, vol. 26(2), August, 2003 - LAP 02205
Antarctic Meteorite Newsletter, vol. 27(1), February, 2004 - LAP 02224, 02226, and 02436
Antarctic Meteorite Newsletter, vol. 27(3), August, 2004 - LAP 03632
Antarctic Meteorite Newsletter, vol. 29(2), September, 2006 - LAP 04841

Meteoritical Bulletin Database

LAP 02205 | LAP 02224 | LAP 02226 | LAP 02436 | LAP 03632 | LAP 04841

Map

ANSMET location Map

References

Anand M., Taylor L. A., Neal C., Patchen A. and Kramer G. (2004) Petrology and geochemistry of LAP 02 205: A new low-Ti mare-basalt meteorite (abstract), Lunar and Planetary Science XXXV, abstract no. 1626, Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston.

Anand M., Taylor L. A., Floss C., Neal C. R., Terada K., and Tanikawa S. (2006) Petrology and geochemistry of LaPaz Icefield 02205: A new unique low-Ti mare-basalt meteorite. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 70, 246–264.

Chokai J., Mikouchi T., Arai T., Monkawa A., Koizumi E., Miyamoto M. (2004) Mineralogical comparison between LAP02205 and lunar mare basalts (abstract). Antarctic Meteorites XXVIII, p. 4–5, National Institute of Polar Research, Tokyo.

Collins S. J., Righter K., and Brandon A. D. (2005) Mineralogy, petrology and oxygen fugacity of the LaPaz icefield lunar basaltic meteorites and the origin of evolved lunar basalts (abstract). In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXVI, abstract no. 1141, 36th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, Houston.

Day J. M. D., Taylor L. A., Patchen A. D, Schnare D. W., and Pearson D. G. (2005) Comparative petrology and geochemistry of the LaPaz mare basalt meteorites (abstract). In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXVI, abstract no. 1419, 36th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, Houston.

Day J. M. D., Pearson D. G., Taylor L. A. (2005) 187Re-187Os isotope disturbance in La Paz mare basalt meteorites (abstract). In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXVI, abstract no. 1424, 36th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, Houston.

Day J. M. D., Nowell G. M., Norman M. D., Pearson D. G., Chertkoff D. G., and Taylor L. A. (2006) Evidence for age-progressive melting of increasingly incompatible-element-enriched mantle reservoirs on the Moon? (abstract). In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXVII, abstract no. 2235, Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston.

Day J. M. D., Taylor L.A., Hill E., Liu Y. (2005) Textural analysis and crystallization histories of the LaPaz mare basalt meteorites (abstract). Meteoritics and Planetary Science 40, A37.

Day J. M. D., Taylor L. A., Floss C., Patchen A. D., Schnare D. W., Pearson D. G. (2006) Comparative petrology, geochemistry and petrogenesis of evolved, low-Ti lunar mare basalt meteorites from the La Paz Icefield. Antarctica. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 70, 1581–1600.

Day J. M. D. and Taylor L. A. (2007) On the structure of mare basalt lava flows from textural analysis of the LaPaz Icefield and Northwest Africa 032 lunar meteorites. Meteoritics & Planetary Science 42, 3–17.

Fernandes V. A. and Burgess R. (2006) Ar-Ar studies of two lunar mare rocks: LAP02205 and EET96008 (abstract). In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXVII, abstract no. 1145, Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston.

Hallis L. H. Joy K. H. Anand M., and Russell S. S. (2007) Compositional analysis of the very-low-Ti mare basalt component of NWA 773 and comparison with low-Ti basalts, LAP 03632 & 02436 (abstract). In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXVIII, abstract no. 1703, 38th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, Houston.

Hill E., Taylor L. A., and Liu Y. (2007) LaPaz 04841: Comparative petrology and textural study of a new lunar mare basalt meteorite (abstract). In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXVIII, abstract no. 1399, 38th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, Houston.

Jolliff B. L., Zeigler R. A., and Korotev R. L. (2004) Petrography of lunar meteorite LAP 02205, a new low-Ti basalt possibly launch paired with NWA 032 (abstract). In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXV, abstract no. 1438, Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston.

Joy K. H., Crawford I. A., Russell S. S., and Kearsley A. (2004) Mineral chemistry of LaPaz Ice Field 02205 – A new lunar basalt (abstract). In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXV, abstract no. 1545, Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston.

Joy K. H., Crawford I. A., Russell S. S., and Kearsley A. (2005) LAP 02205, LAP 02224 and LAP 02226 - Lunar mare basaltic meteorites. Part 1: Petrography and mineral chemistry (abstract). In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXVI, abstract no. 1697, 36th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, Houston.

Joy K. H., Crawford I. A., Russell S. S., and Kearsley A. (2005) LAP 02205, LAP 02224 and LAP 02226 - Lunar mare basaltic meteorites. Part 2: Geochemistry and crystallisation (abstract). In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXVI, abstract no. 1701, 36th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, Houston.

Joy K. H., Crawford I. A., Downes H., Russell S. S., and Kearsley A. T. (2006) A petrological, mineralogical, and chemical analysis of lunar mare basalt meteorite LaPaz Icefield 02205, 02224, and 02226. Meteorit. Planet. Sci. 41, 1003–1025.

Koizumi E., Chokai J., Mikouchi M., and Miyamoto M. (2005) Crystallization experiment on lunar mare basalt LAP 02205 (abstract), In Antarctic Meteorites XXIX, 32–33, National Institute of Polar Research, Tokyo.

Korotev R. L. (2005) Lunar geochemistry as told by lunar meteorites. Chemie der Erde 65, 297–346.

Korotev R. L. and Zeigler R. A. (2007) Keeping up with the lunar meteorites (abstract). In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXVIII, abstract no. 1340, Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston.

Korotev R. L., Zeigler R. A., and Jolliff B. L. (2004) Compositional constraints on the launch pairing of LAP 02205 and PCA 02007 with other lunar meteorites (abstract), Lunar and Planetary Science XXXV, abstract no. 1416, Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston.

Korotev R. L., Irving A. J., and Bunch T. E. (2008) Keeping up with the lunar meteorites – 2008 (abstract). In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXIX, abstract no. 1209, 39th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, Houston.

Mikouchi T. T., Chokai J., Arai T., Koizumi E., Monkawa A., and Miyamoto M. (2004) LAP02205 lunar meteorite: Lunar mare basalt with similarities to the Apollo 12 ilmenite basalt (abstract). In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXV, abstract no. 1548, Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston.

Nishiizumi K., Hillegonds D. J., and Welten K. C. (2006) Exposure and terrestrial histories of lunar meteorites LAP 02205/02224/02226/02436, MET 01210, and PCA 02007 (abstract), In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXVII, abstract no. 2369, Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston.

Nyquist L. E., Shih C.-Y., Reese Y., and Bogard D. D. (2005) Age of lunar meteorite LAP02205 and implications for impact-sampling of planetary surfaces (abstract). In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXVI, abstract no. 1374, Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston.

Nyquist L. E., Shih C-Y., and Reese Y. D. (2007) Sm-Nd and Rb-Sr ages for MIL 05035: Implications for surface and mantle sources (abstract). In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXVIII, abstract no. 1702, 38th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, Houston.

Rankenburg K., Brandon A., Norman M., and Righter K. (2005) LAP 02 205: An evolved member of the Apollo 12 olivine basalt suite? (abstract). 68th Annual Meeting of the Meteoritical Society, number 5294.

Rankenburg K., Brandon A. D., and Neal C. R. (2006) Formation interval of the lunar mantle from high-precision Nd-isotope measurements of six lunar basalts (abstract). 69th Annual Meeting of the Meteoritical Society, abstract no. 5036. Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston.

Rankenburg K., Brandon A. D. and Norman M. D. (2007) A Rb­Sr and Sm­Nd isotope geochronology and trace element study of lunar meteorite LaPaz Icefield 02205. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 71, 2120-2135.

Righter K., Brandon A.D., and Norman M.D. (2004) Mineralogy and petrology of unbrecciated lunar basaltic meteorite LAP 02205 (abstract). In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXV, abstract no. 1667, Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston.

Righter K., Collins S.J., and Brandon A.D. (2005) Mineralogy and petrology of the LaPaz Icefield lunar mare basaltic meteorites. Meteoritics & Planetary Science 40, 1703–1722.

Schnare D. W., Taylor L. A., Day J. M. D., and Patchen A. D. (2005) Petrography and mineral characterization of lunar mare basalt meteorite LAP 02-224 (abstract). In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXVI, abstract no. 1428, 36th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, Houston.

Spicuzza M. J., Day J. M. D., Taylor L. A., and Valley J. W. (2007) Oxygen isotope similarities and differences between the earth and moon: Can oxygen isotopes distinguish meteorites on the moon (abstract). In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXVIII, abstract no. 2025, 38th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, Houston.Sokol A. K. and Bischoff A. (2005) Meteorites from Botswana. Meteorit. Planet. Sci. 40, Suppl., A1177-A184.

Taylor L. A and Day J. M. D. (2005) FeNi metal grains in La Paz mare basalt meteorites and Apollo 12 basalts (abstract). In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXVI, abstract no. 1417, 36th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, Houston.

Zeigler R. A., Korotev R. L., Jolliff B. L., and Haskin L. A. (2005) Petrology and geochemistry of the LaPaz icefield basaltic lunar meteorite and source-crater pairing with Northwest Africa 032. Meteorit. Planet. Sci. 40, 1073–1102.

Chemical Classification

Overview | LAP 02205, et al. | Basaltic Lunar Meteorites

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Prepared by:

Randy L. Korotev

Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences
Washington University in St. Louis

Please don't contact me about the meteorite you think you’ve found until you read this and this.

e-mail: korotev@wustl.edu

Last revised: 11-Feb-2008