Tarkint 001 Martian Meteorite End Cut 2.14g

Tarkint 001 Martian meteorite, 2.14 g end cut

This specimen is an end cut of Tarkint 001, an olivine-phyric shergottite from the Gao region of Mali. Tarkint 001 was approved by the Nomenclature Committee of the Meteoritical Society on 21 December 2025 and published in the Meteoritical Bulletin, no. 114, with a recommended classification of Martian (shergottite). An end cut is the outer piece of a stone, with one cut face showing the interior and the natural exterior of the meteorite on the reverse.

Weight is 2.14 grams. The specimen ships with a Treasure Coast Meteorite Co. certificate of authenticity listing meteorite name, classification, weight and form. Treasure Coast Meteorite Co. is IMCA #3323.

Structure and features

The cut face of this specimen shows millimeter-sized brown-green olivine phenocrysts set in a light tan, fine-grained groundmass. The reverse is the natural exterior of the stone, a weathered tan surface on which olivine grains also stand out. The Meteoritical Bulletin records dark, slightly abraded fusion crust partially covering the exterior of the recovered stones.

Electron microprobe analysis of a polished mount by C. Agee at the Institute of Meteoritics, University of New Mexico, established the petrography. Olivine phenocrysts display core-rim igneous zoning. Plagioclase has been fully converted to maskelynite, the glassy phase that forms when plagioclase is shocked. The groundmass is composed of fine-grained pigeonite and maskelynite, with minor chromite, Ti-magnetite and troilite distributed throughout.

The Meteoritical Bulletin records Tarkint 001 at shock stage high and weathering grade low.

Discovery and provenance

In 2025, fragments of a meteorite were found in a desert area roughly 60 km east of the village of Tarkint and approximately 150 km northeast of the city of Gao, Mali. The discovery was made during a local field survey, where the surface features of the stones drew the attention of the field researchers. Recovery coordinates are 17.4959263 N, 0.6428554 E.

The total collected mass was approximately 2 kg, recovered as several pieces. The material was purchased by Ali Muftah in 2025, who holds the main mass. A 48 g type specimen is on deposit at the University of New Mexico. Eric Twelker holds a 410.7 g piece. The meteorite was submitted for classification by C. Agee under the field name AWM-200, with geochemistry by T. Shisseh at UNM.

Scientific context

Shergottites are igneous rocks from Mars and make up the largest of the three main Martian meteorite groups. Olivine-phyric shergottites are defined by olivine crystals that grew large enough to stand out as phenocrysts within a finer-grained groundmass, a texture that records early crystallization in a magma before the remaining melt solidified.

Reported mineral chemistry for Tarkint 001 is olivine Fa32.6±12.1 with Fe/Mn of 53±4 (n=13); pigeonite Fs23.3±3.2 Wo4.9±2.2 with Fe/Mn of 30±1 (n=17); and maskelynite An54.9±3.5 Ab44.7±3.5 (n=4).

The classification notes that the macroscopic texture of Tarkint 001 is reminiscent of NWA 10416, but states the two meteorites are not paired. Tarkint 001 lacks augite and altered olivine, it contains maskelynite only with no remnant plagioclase present, and its olivine is significantly more forsteritic than that of NWA 10416.

Tarkint 001 was published in Gattacceca J., Grossman J. N., Weisberg M. M., Greshake A., Almeida N. V., Cartier C., Friedrich J. M., Goodrich C., Joy K. H., Schoenbaechler M., Schrader D. L., Yabuta H. and Zhang B. (2026), The Meteoritical Bulletin, No. 114, Meteoritics & Planetary Science 61, 942-946, doi:10.1111/maps.70157. That bulletin lists 24 Martian meteorites among the meteorites approved in 2025.

For background on how a meteorite reaches an official classification, see our guide to the Meteoritical Bulletin, and for an overview of the group see what is a Martian meteorite.

Frequently asked questions

Is Tarkint 001 an officially classified meteorite?

Yes. Tarkint 001 was approved on 21 December 2025 and published in the Meteoritical Bulletin, no. 114, with the recommended classification Martian (shergottite). The full entry is public in the Meteoritical Bulletin Database.

What does olivine-phyric mean?

It describes an igneous texture in which olivine crystals grew large enough to stand out as visible phenocrysts within a finer-grained groundmass. In Tarkint 001 these appear as millimeter-sized brown-green grains against a light tan matrix.

What is maskelynite?

Maskelynite is plagioclase feldspar that has been converted to glass by shock pressure without melting in the ordinary sense. Its presence is one of the features that records the impact event that launched the rock off the Martian surface.

What is an end cut?

An end cut is the outermost piece cut from a stone. It has one cut face showing the interior and, on the reverse, the original exterior surface of the meteorite. A full slice, by contrast, has two cut faces.

How much Tarkint 001 was recovered?

The Meteoritical Bulletin records a total collected mass of approximately 2 kg, recovered as several pieces, with a 48 g type specimen on deposit at the University of New Mexico.

Does this specimen come with documentation?

Yes. Every specimen ships with a Treasure Coast Meteorite Co. certificate of authenticity recording the meteorite name, classification, weight and form. We are IMCA member #3323.

Collector significance

As of November 2026, the Meteoritical Bulletin Database lists Tarkint 001 as 1 of 372 approved meteorites classified as Martian (shergottite). Every gram of Martian material in private hands arrives the same way, as a fragment blasted off the surface of Mars by an impact, carried through space, and later recovered on Earth. There is no other supply route, since returned Martian samples do not exist and Apollo-style collection has never been performed on Mars.

With a total collected mass near 2 kg and the main mass held privately, cut material from Tarkint 001 is what circulates. An end cut at gram scale shows the interior texture on its cut face, including the olivine phenocrysts and groundmass that define the classification, together with the natural exterior of the stone on the reverse, in a size that suits a working collection rather than an institutional one. Additional Martian material is listed in our Martian meteorites collection.

The complete official record for this meteorite, including petrography, geochemistry and specimen distribution, is available in the Meteoritical Bulletin Database entry for Tarkint 001.