Hedenbergite, CaFeSi2O6, is the iron rich end member of the pyroxene group having a monoclinic crystal system.
Since it is a member of the pyroxene family, there is a great deal of interest in its importance to general geologic processes.
Hedenbergite is a part of a pyroxene solid solution chain consisting of diopside and augite, and is the iron rich end member.
Chondrites are meteorites that have experienced very little alteration by melting or differentiation since the formation of the Solar System 4.56 billion years ago.
Hedenbergite was found to be the most abundant secondary calcium-rich silicate phase within Allende chondules and is closely associated with other minerals such as sodalite and nepheline.
[6] Kimura and Ikeda (1995) also suggest that hedenbergite formation may have been the result of the consumption of CaO and SiO2 as plagioclases decomposed into sodalite and nepheline as well as alkali-calcium exchange before the condrules' incorporation into the parent body.
The Nickel Plate gold skarn deposit of the Hedley District in southern British Columbia is characterized by hedenbergitic pyroxene.