Amgala 001 is a beautiful meteorite found in 2022 in Western Sahara. This meteorite is officially classified as a Martian shergottite and is one of only 307 meteorites of this type.
Its physical characteristics include a slightly worn exterior with a brown color and a distinctive bumpy appearance, while the fresh interior is gray-green with dark olivine phenocrysts. This meteorite contains zoned olivine phenocrysts up to 2 mm in length and is composed of prismatic, zoned clinopyroxene and maskelynite needles, along with portions of alkali feldspar, pyrrhotite, ulvöspinel, chromite, ilmenite, baddeleyite, and chlorapatite.
What is most striking about Amgala 001 is the dark black, thin shock veins. Shock veins in meteorites form due to extreme pressures and temperatures during cosmic collisions. When a meteorite impacts a planetary body, a vast amount of energy is released, creating a shock wave that travels through the rock. This wave causes the material to melt and then rapidly solidify, forming dark, glassy veins known as shock veins. These structures serve as evidence of intense impact events and provide valuable insights into dynamic processes in the solar system.
The pieces displayed in our shop were purchased directly from Mark Lyon, who is listed in the official Meteoritical Bulletin database.
Amgala 001 is clearly one of the most beautiful Martian meteorites and, like other shergottites, is appropriately rare.
Currently we have the following Amgala 001 meteorites.