Mantle xenolith
Part of Hall of Planet Earth.
Part of Hall of Planet Earth.
from San Carlos, Arizona
Erupting basaltic lavas may carry fragments of peridotite from the mantle to the surface—most commonly the rocks lherzolite and pyroxenite.
Can you find the minerals in the lherzolite by their colors?
Olivine is the pale green mineral, diopside is bottle-green and enstatite is brown-black.
Can you find the pyroxenite?
It is mostly composed of the brown-black mineral enstatite.
AMNH collection