elkinstantonite
{{Short description|Mineral}}
{{Infobox mineral
| name = Elkinstantonite
| formula = {{chem2|Fe4(PO4)2O}}
| system = Monoclinic
| symmetry = P21/c (no. 14)
}}
Elkinstantonite {{IPAc-en|,|E|l|k|I|n|z|'|t|ae|n|t|@|n|ai|t}} is a mineral with formula {{chem2|Fe4(PO4)2O}} that was first generated in a laboratory in the 1980s Bouchdoug, M. et al."Preparation et etude d'un oxyphosphate Fe4(PO4)2O". J. Solid State Chem. (1982) 42, p. 149-157 [https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-4596(82)90261-4 10.1016/0022-4596(82)90261-4] and first identified from natural origins in 2022, when the official mineral designation was also given. It is monoclinic, with space group P21/c (space group 14).{{cite web |date=Nov 21, 2022|last1=Chris Herd |title=The El Ali Meteorite: Ancient History and New Minerals |url=https://www.ualberta.ca/institute-for-space-science-exploration-and-technology/media-library/symposium2022-videos/herd.mp4}}, talk given at the Space Exploration Symposium 2022, University of Alberta.
History
Elkinstantonite was first identified in nature by scientists from the University of Alberta who were given a 70-gram piece of an ancient 15-ton El Ali meteorite that landed in Somalia and was first noticed by the international scientific community in 2020.{{Cite news |date=2022-11-29 |title=Somalia meteorite: Joy as scientists find two new minerals |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-63800879 |access-date=2022-11-29}} Elkinstantonite was named after NASA scientist Lindy Elkins-Tanton.
The mineral was identified by Andrew Locock who is employed by the university as the head of its electron microprobe laboratory,{{Cite web |title=In meteorite, Alberta researchers discover 2 minerals never before seen on Earth {{!}} Globalnews.ca |url=https://globalnews.ca/news/9309682/alberta-2-new-minerals-meteorite-somalia/ |access-date=2022-11-29 |website=Global News |language=en-US}} and classified by geologist Chris Herd.{{Cite web |title=U of A scientists help identify two new minerals found in 'curious' meteorite |url=https://edmontonjournal.com/news/local-news/u-of-a-scientists-help-identify-two-new-minerals-found-in-curious-meteorite |access-date=2022-11-30 |website=edmontonjournal |language=en-CA}} Locock also identified the first natural specimen of elaliite in the same sample.{{Cite web |date=2022-11-29 |title=Researchers discover two new minerals on meteorite grounded in Somalia |url=https://www.theguardian.com/science/2022/nov/29/researchers-discover-two-new-minerals-on-meteorite-grounded-in-somalia |access-date=2022-11-29 |website=the Guardian |language=en}}
Synthetic versions of elkinstantonite were produced in a French laboratory in the 1980s, but could not be categorised as a mineral until they were found in nature.
References
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