Ataxite

Ataxites are composed mainly of meteoric iron, a native metal found in meteorites that consists of the mineral taenite with minor amounts of plessite, troilite, and microscopic lamellae of kamacite. Ataxites are the most nickel-rich meteorites known; they usually contain over 18% nickel.Vagn F. Buchwald, Handbook of Iron Meteorites. University of California Press, 1975 The high nickel content is the reason that they do not develop a Widmanstätten structure, because in this case kamacite can be exsolved from taenite only at such a low temperature (below about 600°C) where diffusion is already too slow.F. Heide, F. Wlotzka, Meteorites, Messengers from Space, Springer-Verlag 1995, page 143

Most ataxites belong to the IVB group or are classified as "Iron, ungrouped" because they do not fit in any of the groups currently recognized by meteorite classification. Some ataxites belong to the IAB group and fall into the sHL (high-Au, low-Ni subgroup), sLH (low-Au, high-Ni subgroup), sHH (high-Au, high-Ni subgroup) and "ung" subgroup (does not fit any subgroup of IAB). Only a couple of ataxites have been classified into the IAB complex and the IIF, IVA, IIAB, IIIAB groups.{{cite web|title=Meteoritical Bulletin Database|url=http://www.lpi.usra.edu/meteor/metbull.php|publisher=Meteoritical Society|access-date=18 December 2012}}

They are a rare class, with none of the about 50 observed iron meteorite falls being an ataxite, however, the largest meteorite ever, the Hoba meteorite (found 1920 in Namibia, weight 60 tons), belongs to this class. A Tibetan Buddhist statue, the Iron Man, was likely carved from an ataxite meteorite. It might even be made from a fragment of the Chinga meteorite.{{cite web|title=Ancient Buddhist Statue Made of Meteorite, New Study Reveals|url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/09/120926104255.htm|publisher=Science Daily|access-date=26 December 2012}}{{cite journal|last=BUCHNER|first=Elmar|author2=SCHMIEDER, Martin|author3=KURAT, Gero|author4=BRANDSTÄTTER, Franz|author5=KRAMAR, Utz|author6=NTAFLOS, Theo|author7= KRÖCHERT, Jörg|title=Buddha from space-An ancient object of art made of a Chinga iron meteorite fragment*|journal=Meteoritics & Planetary Science|date=1 September 2012|volume=47|issue=9|pages=1491–1501|doi=10.1111/j.1945-5100.2012.01409.x|bibcode=2012M&PS...47.1491B|doi-access=free}} Other examples of ataxites are the Dronino meteorite and pieces of the Gebel Kamil.

• Glossary of meteoritics

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