COMPLETE SLICE OF A LUNAR METEORITE — NWA 11237

COMPLETE SLICE OF A LUNAR METEORITE — NWA 11237

Lunar (feldspathic, regolithic breccia)

Sahara Desert, Northwest Africa

4 x 3 ¾ inches (10.16 x 9.53 cm.) and weighs 31.98 grams

This is a complete slice of a lunar meteorite — it is from a Moon rock that was ejected off the lunar surface following an asteroid impact. The total known weight of the NWA 11237 meteorite is only 583 grams and this will forever be one of the few complete slices of this meteorite available. The cut surface evidences a galaxy of inclusions, the result of the ongoing pulverizing of the Moon's surface by impacts prior to the collision responsible for launching this rock off the lunar surface.

The dark groundmass is regolith (lunar soil which had melted). Lunar meteorites are among the rarest substances on Earth and just 0.4% of all meteorites are of lunar origin. NWA 11237 was classified by the world’s foremost classifier of lunar specimens, Dr. Anthony Irving (University of Washington).