Appealing Northwest Africa (NWA) 5480 olivine diogenite meteorite end cut, with an attractive laboratory-prepared polished face. The partial end cut weighs 24.2 grams and measures approximately 50 mm x 38 mm x 8 mm. The material must have been heated to a point where it became 'plasticized' and mixed, presumably in the deep interior (mantle) of the NWA 5480 parent body (believed to be asteroid 4 Vesta). By analogy with deformed olivine-orthopyroxene-rich samples of the Earth's mantle (known as harzburgites), it appears likely that temperatures were high enough that NWA 5480 represents a solid residue after partial melting to produce molten magma, which presumably ascended towards the surface of the parent body. The 'swirl' texture that can be seen on the interior and exterior graphically displays the flowing and mixing of the olivine and orthopyroxene grains, with intermingled chromite crystals. As NWA 5480 exhibits characteristics unknown in other meteorites, it is of the utmost interest to scientists and collectors alike.
