El Eglab 001

Mesosiderite
Found in Tidouf, Algeria in 2023

Mesosiderites make up half of the stony-iron group — the rarest of the three main types of meteorites as of 2023 there are only 256 known pallasites. Originally thought to have a similar origin story to their stony-iron “cousins,” the pallasites, they are now believed to be entirely unique. While pallasites frequently show a consistent distribution of their nickel-iron and silicate components, the interiors of mesosiderites are irregular. El Eglab 001 is a particularly excellent example of the brecciated and heterogeneous structure that is typical of mesosiderites. Note the large and highly prominent spherical nickel-iron inclusions, suspended in a mottled silicate and metal matrix. Similar nodules are seen in the Bondoc mesosiderite (found, 1956, Philippines), but those are stand-alone pieces as the silicate matrix that once enclosed them has, by and large, corroded away.