Replication Data for: The Renchen L5-6 chondrite breccia – The first confirmed meteorite fall from Baden-Württemberg (Germany).

The texture, the large grain size of plagioclase, and the homogeneous compositions of olivine (∼Fa26) and pyroxene (∼Fs22) clearly indicate that Renchen is composed of metamorphosed rock fragments (L5–6). An L-group (and ordinary chondrite) heritage is consistent with the data on the model abundance of metal, the density, the magnetic susceptibility as well as on O-, Ti-, and Cr-isotope characteristics. Renchen does not contain solar wind implanted noble gases and is a fragmental breccia.

An unusually large mm-sized merrillite-apatite aggregate shows trace element characteristics like other phosphates from ordinary chondrites. Data on the bulk chemistry, IR-spectroscopy, cosmogenic nuclides, and organic components also indicate similarities to other metamorphosed L chondrites. Noble gas studies reveal that the meteorite has a cosmic ray exposure (CRE) age of 42 Ma and that most of the cosmogenic gases were produced in a meteoroid with a radius of at max. 20 cm based on the radionuclide 26Al and 10–150 cm based on cosmogenic 22Ne/21Ne.

K-Ar and U/Th-He gas retention ages are both in the range ∼3.0–3.2 Ga. Both systems do not show evidence for a complete reset 470 Ma ago, and may instead have recorded the same resetting event 3.0 Ga ago. TRR 170 no. 69