page_title: Northwest Africa 7325
hierarchical_section_title: Northwest Africa 7325
caption_attribution_description: English: A 2.810 gram slice of the mysterious Northwest Africa 7325 Meteorite with green chromium diopside crystals. Photograph courtesy of Stefan Ralew for the Jared Collins Collection.
context_page_description: Northwest Africa 7325, also known as NWA 7325 is the first meteorite believed to have originated from Mercury. Found in a marketplace in Erfoud, Morocco in April 2012, the meteorite is composed of 35 fragments with a combined weight of approximately 345 grams. Investigation of the meteorite by Anthony Irving at the University of Washington determined that the meteorite's composition is consistent with that of Mercury as determined by the MESSENGER spacecraft. Irving cautioned, however, that NWA 7325 could also have come from a smaller but Mercury-like body; an alternative explanation offered is that NWA 7325 may be a primitive achondrite. Notable for its green fusion crust and high-magnesium/low-iron composition, NWA 7325 is estimated to be 4.56 billion years old and was likely ejected from Mercury on an Earth-intersecting trajectory by an impact.
context_section_description: Northwest Africa 7325, also known as NWA 7325 is the first meteorite believed to have originated from Mercury. Found in a marketplace in Erfoud, Morocco in April 2012, the meteorite is composed of 35 fragments with a combined weight of approximately 345 grams (12.2 oz). Investigation of the meteorite by Anthony Irving at the University of Washington determined that the meteorite's composition is consistent with that of Mercury as determined by the MESSENGER spacecraft. Irving cautioned, however, that NWA 7325 could also have come from a smaller but Mercury-like body; an alternative explanation offered is that NWA 7325 may be a primitive achondrite. Notable for its green fusion crust and high-magnesium/low-iron composition, NWA 7325 is estimated to be 4.56 billion years old and was likely ejected from Mercury on an Earth-intersecting trajectory by an impact.
caption: A 2.810-gram (0.0991 oz) slice of Northwest Africa 7325 with green chromium diopside crystals. Photograph courtesy of Stefan Ralew for the Jared Collins Collection.
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