* Astronomy

Blobrana · L

Northwest Africa 7325

Blobrana · L

RE: NWA 7325

Blobrana · L

Could this stone be the first meteorite from Mercury ever found?

Early in 2012, someone in Southern Morocco picked up 35 greenish stones, including the one shown above. Purchased by a dealer in Erfoud, Morocco, it was then resold to Stefan Ralew, a meteorite collector from Berlin.
The dealer was demanding a high price, and Ralew may have hesitated. But the wrinkled glassy coating on one face of the rock was clearly a fusion crust, a kind of glaze that forms when a meteorite is heated as it passes through the atmosphere.
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Is the Green Rock Really from Mercury? Some Disagree

NWA 7325 by the 'scientist's' own admission, is exceptionally depleted in iron. A piece of rock coming from an exceptionally iron-poor region may (or may not) happen to be magnetically distinct, as a product of its environment. Subsequent events, such as impact shock and space travel, might also influence magnetic property.
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Blobrana · L

Greenish rock may be first meteorite from Mercury

NWA 7325 is the name for a meteorite fall that was spotted in southern Morocco in 2012, comprising 35 fragments totalling about 345 grams. The dark green stones were purchased by meteorite dealer Stefan Ralew, who operates the retail site SR Meteorites. Ralew immediately made note of the rocks' deep colours and lustrous, glassy exteriors.
Even though the ratio of calcium silicates is higher than what's found on Mercury today, Irving speculates that the fragments of NWA 7325 could have come from a deeper part of Mercury's crust, excavated by a powerful impact event and launched into space, eventually finding their way to Earth.
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