Howardite End Cut - Bechar 008 (HED) - Asteroid 4 Vesta Fragment - 32.5 g
11
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33
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€ 1
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Selected by Francesco Moser
Over 20 years collecting meteorites; former museum curator and experienced restorer.
Estimate € 330 - € 380
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Bechar 008 is a Howardite end cut meteorite from Bechar, Algeria, an HED achondrite fragment associated with asteroid 4 Vesta, weighing 32.5 g, supplied with two certificates of authenticity, a specimen ID card and a gem display box.
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Description from the seller
Bechar 008 is an officially classified HED achondrite, specifically a howardite, recovered in the Bechar region of Algeria in 2022. The find has a total recorded mass of 1.7 kg and is characterised as a polymict achondritic breccia, containing a diverse mixture of both eucritic and diogenitic material.
The specimen displays a strongly heterogeneous brecciated texture, with contrasting lithic and mineral fragments embedded in a fine-grained dark matrix. The published petrography identifies eucritic gabbro and granulitic clasts, together with diogenitic pyroxene, feldspar, silica, chromite, ilmenite and Fe-Ni metal. Diogenitic components comprise approximately 10–20 vol.% of the meteorite.
Several small metallic inclusions can be observed within the darker matrix of this specimen. Their morphology and occurrence are consistent with the Fe-Ni metal reported in the classification and may represent material introduced by the impactor during the brecciation process; however, an impactor origin cannot be established from appearance alone.
The combination of contrasting eucritic and diogenitic lithologies records the extensive impact processing experienced by material from the HED parent body, generally associated with asteroid 4 Vesta.
I am a member of the Meteoritical Society (#7743), the Global Meteorite Association (#G0129) and have been collecting meteorites for more than 16 years.
Bechar 008 is an officially classified HED achondrite, specifically a howardite, recovered in the Bechar region of Algeria in 2022. The find has a total recorded mass of 1.7 kg and is characterised as a polymict achondritic breccia, containing a diverse mixture of both eucritic and diogenitic material.
The specimen displays a strongly heterogeneous brecciated texture, with contrasting lithic and mineral fragments embedded in a fine-grained dark matrix. The published petrography identifies eucritic gabbro and granulitic clasts, together with diogenitic pyroxene, feldspar, silica, chromite, ilmenite and Fe-Ni metal. Diogenitic components comprise approximately 10–20 vol.% of the meteorite.
Several small metallic inclusions can be observed within the darker matrix of this specimen. Their morphology and occurrence are consistent with the Fe-Ni metal reported in the classification and may represent material introduced by the impactor during the brecciation process; however, an impactor origin cannot be established from appearance alone.
The combination of contrasting eucritic and diogenitic lithologies records the extensive impact processing experienced by material from the HED parent body, generally associated with asteroid 4 Vesta.
I am a member of the Meteoritical Society (#7743), the Global Meteorite Association (#G0129) and have been collecting meteorites for more than 16 years.
Details
Type of meteorite
Howardite End Cut - Bechar 008 (HED) - Asteroid 4 Vesta Fragment
Supplement
2 certificates of authenticity, specimen ID card + gem display box
Weight
32.5 g
Country of origin
Algeria
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