Esquel (meteorite)
{{Short description|Meteorite found in Argentina}}
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{{Infobox meteorite
|Name = Esquel
|Image = Esquel.jpg
|Image_caption = The slice shows the crystals' transparency
|Type = Stony–iron
|Class = Pallasite
|Group = Main Group Pallasite (MGP)
|Structural_classification=
|Composition = 8.5% Ni, 21.5 ppm Ga, 55.5 ppm Ge, 0.023 ppm Ir
|Shock =
|Weathering =
|Country = Argentina
|Lat_Long = {{coord|42|54|S|71|20|W|display=inline,title}}
|Observed_fall = No
|Fall_date =
|Found_date = 1951[http://www.lpi.usra.edu/meteor/docs/mb29.pdf Meteoritical Bulletin, no. 29, Moscow (1964)]
|TKW= 755 kg{{metbull|10054|Esquel}}
|Image2 =
|Image2_caption=
}}
Esquel is a meteorite found near Esquel, a Patagonian town in the northwest part of the province of Chubut in Argentina. It is a pallasite, a type of stony–iron meteorite that when cut and polished shows yellowish olivine (peridot) crystals.
In 1951 a farmer uncovered a meteorite in an unknown location near Esquel while digging a hole for a water tank. The meteorite was purchased from the finders and taken to the United States in 1992 by meteorite expert Robert Haag. The Esquel pallasite is known worldwide among collectors and the meteoritical scientific community. Esquel is regarded as one of the most beautiful meteorites ever found and is also one of the most desirable pallasites among meteorite collectors. It is a main group pallasite (MGP).
Specimens
File:At New York City 2024 058.jpg
The Meteoritical Bulletin no. 29 (1964) reports a main mass of "about 1500 kg".
However O. A. Turone claimed a main mass weight of {{convert|755|kg}}."The weight of the main mass is 755kg and not 1500kg as indicated", O.A.Turone, Buenos Aires, priv. comm. to J.Koblitz, 1994. MetBase 7.0 for Windows. Author: Joern Koblitz, The MetBase Library of Meteoritics and Planetary Sciences, Benquestrasse 27, D-28209 Bremen, Germany
Robert Haag, the buyer of the main mass, reported a weight of {{convert|680|kg}}.{{cite journal|url=http://adsabs.harvard.edu/full/1998M&PS...33..221U|title=Paucity of sulfide in a large slab of Esquel: New perspectives on pallasite formation|journal=Meteoritics & Planetary Science|bibcode=1998M&PS...33..221U |last1=Ulff-Møller |first1=Finn |last2=Choi |first2=Byeon-Gak |last3=Rubin |first3=Alan E. |last4=Tran |first4=Jacquelyn |last5=Wasson |first5=John T. |date=1998 |volume=33 |issue=2 |page=221 |doi=10.1111/j.1945-5100.1998.tb01627.x }}
Almost all of the Esquel ever found on the market is cut from his piece.
{{multiple image
|direction = horizontal
|align = center
|width1 = 95
|width2 = 190
|width3 = 196
|image1 = Esquel pallasite partial slice.jpg
|image2 = Esquel meteorite.jpg
|image3 = Pallasite-Esquel-RoyalOntarioMuseum-Jan18-09.jpg
|footer = Polished slices of the stony-iron Esquel pallasite: at the Canadian Museum of Nature (left), at the American Museum of Natural History (middle) and encased yellow-green olivine crystals in the iron-nickel matrix are clearly visible (right).
}}
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Notes and references
{{Reflist}}
See also
External links
- {{cite web|url=http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/permanent-exhibitions/earth-and-planetary-sciences-halls/arthur-ross-hall-of-meteorites/building-planets/mantle/jewels-from-space/esquel |publisher=American Museum of Natural History|title=Jewels from space:Esquel}}
- {{cite web|url=http://meteoriteman.com/roberts-private-collection/stony-iron-meteorites/pallasites/esquel/|title=Image of the main mass left|publisher=Robert Haag website|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20141113024737/http://meteoriteman.com/roberts-private-collection/stony-iron-meteorites/pallasites/esquel/|archivedate=2014-11-13}}
- [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-30916692 BBC article on the Esquel meteorite]
- {{metbull|22599|Esquel}}
{{Meteorites}}
{{Meteorites by name}}