14303 (44) Crystalline-matrix Breccia
Collection:
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Fact sheet

14303 (44) Crystalline-matrix Breccia

14303 has an overall clastic nature being similar to samples 14305 and 14321, in that there is a “clast-in-clast” relationship indicating complex origin. The matrix of 14303 (and similar Apollo 14 breccias) is strongly annealed (thermally metamorphosed). On a very fine scale, the matrix is made up of interlocking grains of plagioclase, low-Ca pyroxene and ilmenite with occasional reaction rims around micro-xenocrysts of olivine, pyroxene or spinel.

The sample weighed 898.4 grams before analysis and its matrix is 3.91±0.04 billion years old (Ar/Ar). Zircon within granite clasts have been dated at 4.308±0.004 billion years old (U/Pb). Our thin section does not show any granite (or troctolite) clasts.

Further details of this and other Apollo samples are here: http://curator.jsc.nasa.gov/lunar/

About this collection

The Apollo 14 landing site was in a region formed by impact-basin debris.

Most of the 42 kilograms of rocks and soil collected on Apollo 14 are breccias (rocks that are composed of fragments of other, older rocks). In some cases, the rock fragments that form a breccia are themselves breccias. Such rocks obviously have experienced complex histories with multiple generations of impact events. Some breccias were heated enough that some of the material in the rock was melted. 

Apollo 14 was launched on 31 January 1971.

Sample details

Collection: Apollo 14
Type
metamorphic
Rock-forming mineral
olivine
pyroxene
feldspar
glass
Accessory minerals
ilmenite
troilite
metallic iron
Category guide  
Category Guide
Title
Refers to any word or phrase that appears in the individual rock names. Names are generally descriptive; they allow users to search for broad terms like ‘granite’ as well as more specific names such as ‘breccia’. However, the adjacent descriptions of the specimens captures a wider range of general words and phrases and is a more powerful search tool.
Description
Refers to any word or phrase that appears anywhere in the descriptions of the specimens
Accessory minerals
Minerals that occur in very low abundance in a rock. They are usually not visible with the naked eye and contribute perhapssver, they often dominate the rare elements such as platinum group metals.
Rock-forming minerals
Minerals that make up the bulk of all rock samples and are also the ones used in rock classi?cation.
Timescale
Selecting one or more period, for example 'Jurassic'.
Theme
A term used to group together related samples that are not already gathered into a single Collection. For instance, there is a ‘SW England granites’ theme that includes such rock types as granite, hydrothermal breccia, skarn and vein samples.
Category
A general term used to label a rock sample. It is a useful way of grouping similar samples throughout a collection. Category names are often, but not exclusively, common rock names (e.g. granite, basalt, dolerite, gabbro, greisen, skarn, gneiss, amphibolite, limestone, sandstone).
Owner
The owner of the sample that appears in the collection. For example, NASA owns all the samples that appear in the Moon Rocks collection
We would like to thank the following for the use of this sample: