Benton meteorite, Benton, Canterbury Parish, York Co., New Brunswick, Canadai

Regional Level Types
Benton meteorite	Meteorite Fall Location
Benton	Town
Canterbury Parish	Parish
York Co.	County
New Brunswick	Province
Canada	Country

Ordinary chondrite, brecciated (LL6,br; S3)
Fell, 16 January 1899; 2.84 kg, 2 stones

Two nearly identical stones (1500 g; 1340 g) fell. The interior of the meteorite consists primarily of light-colored clasts embedded in a darker matrix. Clasts within the matrix, mostly olivine and orthopyroxene, are largely equilibrated with the uncommon chondrules and a few larger (50-100 µm) grains. Olivine (Fa30.5) and orthopyroxene (Fs~26) compositions are characteristic of the LL6 geochemical group of ordinary chondrites. Dominant olivine and lesser orthopyroxene along with accompanying albitic plagioclase, troilite and Fe-Ni metal account for most of the meteorite's mass. Fe-Ni metal phases include taenite [sometimes cloudy], tetrataenite, and rare kamacite. Reported accessory and minor phases include chromite, diopsidic clinopyroxene, ilmenite, merrillite, and isocubanite. Post-brecciation and post-annealing features (planar fractures, undulose extinction, incipient mosaicism) are present in various shock-veins. A relatively recent and thorough petrographic and mineralogical review was provided by Walton & Spray (2003). A cosmic ray exposure age of 29.2 Ma has also been reported.

LL chondrites represent ~10% of all meteorite falls. Benton is one of 43 witnessed and confirmed falls classified as exactly 'LL6' chondrites at the Meteoritical Bulletin Database as 2017 began.

The second stone has been held by the Geological Society of Canada (Ottawa). The first stone has been distributed to several institutions.

Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality

References