Louisfuchsite
A rhönite-type calcium magnesium titanium silicate, a refractory mineral from the solar nebula.
Key facts
- Formula
- Ca2(Mg4Ti2)(Al4Si2)O20
- Family
- Silicates
- Crystal system
- Triclinic
- First described
- the CK chondrite Northwest Africa 4964, 2024
Louisfuchsite was described in 2024 from a calcium-aluminium-rich inclusion in Northwest Africa 4964, a CK chondrite. It is named after Louis Fuchs, an American mineralogist who described several minerals from meteorites.
What it is
Louisfuchsite has the structure of rhönite, a mineral known from basalts on Earth, but is rich in magnesium, titanium and aluminium and poor in iron. Its composition fits a high-temperature origin in the hot gas around the young Sun.
Where it is found
It occurs in a calcium-aluminium-rich inclusion in NWA 4964, a CK carbonaceous chondrite. CK chondrites were heated on their parent body, so finding a primary refractory mineral in one is unusual.
How it is recognised
It is identified with a scanning electron microscope, by its composition and by electron backscatter diffraction.
Did you know?
CK chondrites are named after Karoonda, a stone that fell in South Australia in 1930.
Rhönite itself is named after the Rhön mountains in Germany.