Elkinstantonite

Elkinstantonite /ˌɛlkɪnzˈtæntənaɪt/ is a mineral with formula Fe₄(PO₄)₂O that was first generated in a laboratory in the 1980s^[1] and first identified from natural origins in 2022, when the official mineral designation was also given. It is monoclinic, with space group P2₁/c (space group 14).^[2]

Elkinstantonite
General
Category	Minerals
Formula	Fe4(PO4)2O
Crystal system	Monoclinic
Space group	P21/c (no. 14)

History

Elkinstantonite was first identified in nature by scientists from the University of Alberta who were given a 70-gram piece of an ancient 15-ton El Ali meteorite that landed in Somalia and was first noticed by the international scientific community in 2020.^[3] Elkinstantonite was named after NASA scientist Lindy Elkins-Tanton.^[3]

The mineral was identified by Andrew Locock who is employed by the university as the head of its electron microprobe laboratory,^[4] and classified by geologist Chris Herd.^[5] Locock also identified the first natural specimen of elaliite in the same sample.^[6]

Synthetic versions of elkinstantonite were produced in a French laboratory in the 1980s, but could not be categorised as a mineral until they were found in nature.^[4]