Awaruite is a naturally occurring alloy

Alloy

An alloy is a mixture or metallic solid solution composed of two or more elements. Complete solid solution alloys give single solid phase microstructure, while partial solutions give two or more phases that may or may not be homogeneous in distribution, depending on thermal history...

 of nickel

Nickel

Nickel is a chemical element with the chemical symbol Ni and atomic number 28. It is a silvery-white lustrous metal with a slight golden tinge. Nickel belongs to the transition metals and is hard and ductile...

 and iron

Iron

Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...

 with a composition from Ni₂Fe to Ni₃Fe.

Awaruite occurs in river placer deposit

Placer deposit

In geology, a placer deposit or placer is an accumulation of valuable minerals formed by gravity separation during sedimentary processes. The name is from the Spanish word placer, meaning "alluvial sand". Placer mining is an important source of gold, and was the main technique used in the early...

s derived from serpentinized peridotite

Peridotite

A peridotite is a dense, coarse-grained igneous rock, consisting mostly of the minerals olivine and pyroxene. Peridotite is ultramafic, as the rock contains less than 45% silica. It is high in magnesium, reflecting the high proportions of magnesium-rich olivine, with appreciable iron...

s and ophiolites. It also occurs as a rare component of meteorite

Meteorite

A meteorite is a natural object originating in outer space that survives impact with the Earth's surface. Meteorites can be big or small. Most meteorites derive from small astronomical objects called meteoroids, but they are also sometimes produced by impacts of asteroids...

s. It occurs in association with native gold and magnetite

Magnetite

Magnetite is a ferrimagnetic mineral with chemical formula Fe3O4, one of several iron oxides and a member of the spinel group. The chemical IUPAC name is iron oxide and the common chemical name is ferrous-ferric oxide. The formula for magnetite may also be written as FeO·Fe2O3, which is one part...

 in placers; with copper

Copper

Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...

, heazlewoodite

Heazlewoodite

Heazlewoodite, Ni3S2, is a rare sulfur-poor nickel sulfide mineral found in serpentinitized dunite. It occurs as disseminations and masses of opaque, metallic light bronze to brassy yellow grains which crystallize in the trigonal crystal system. It has a hardness of 4, a specific gravity of 5.82,...

, pentlandite

Pentlandite

Pentlandite is an iron-nickel sulfide, 9S8. Pentlandite usually has a Ni:Fe ratio of close to 1:1. It also contains minor cobalt.Pentlandite forms isometric crystals, but is normally found in massive granular aggregates. It is brittle with a hardness of 3.5 - 4 and specific gravity of 4.6 - 5.0 and...

, violarite

Violarite

Violarite is a supergene sulfide mineral associated with the weathering and oxidation of primary pentlandite nickel sulfide ore minerals....

, chromite

Chromite

Chromite is an iron chromium oxide: FeCr2O4. It is an oxide mineral belonging to the spinel group. Magnesium can substitute for iron in variable amounts as it forms a solid solution with magnesiochromite ; substitution of aluminium occurs leading to hercynite .-Occurrence:Chromite is found in...

, and
millerite

Millerite

Millerite is a nickel sulfide mineral, NiS. It is brassy in colour and has an acicular habit, often forming radiating masses and furry aggregates...

 in peridotites; with kamacite

Kamacite

Kamacite is a mineral. It is an alloy of iron and nickel, usually in the proportions of 90:10 to 95:5 although impurities such as cobalt or carbon may be present. On the surface of Earth, it occurs naturally only in meteorites. It has a metallic luster, is gray and has no clear cleavage although...

, allabogdanite

Allabogdanite

Allabogdanite is a very rare phosphide mineral with formula 2P, found in 1997 in a meteorite. It was described for an occurrence in the Onello meteorite in the Onello River basin, Sakha Republic; Yakutia, Russia; associated with...

, schreibersite

Schreibersite

Schreibersite is generally a rare iron nickel phosphide mineral, 3P, though common in iron-nickel meteorites. It is rarely reported from Earth . Another name used for the mineral is rhabdite. It forms tetragonal crystals with perfect 001 cleavage. Its color ranges from bronze to brass yellow to...

 and graphite

Graphite

The mineral graphite is one of the allotropes of carbon. It was named by Abraham Gottlob Werner in 1789 from the Ancient Greek γράφω , "to draw/write", for its use in pencils, where it is commonly called lead . Unlike diamond , graphite is an electrical conductor, a semimetal...

 in meteorites.
It was first described in 1885 for an occurrence along Gorge River

Gorge River

The Gorge River is a river on the West Coast of New Zealand. It arises in the Hope Blue River Range and flows south-west into the Tasman Sea. Its tributaries include the Duncan River and Jerry River. It passes through Cascade Forest. Its mouth is about 15 km north-east of Awarua Point. The Gorge...

, Awarua Bay South Island

South Island

The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman Sea, to the south and east by the Pacific Ocean...

, New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

, its type locality

Type locality (geology)

Type locality , also called type area or type locale, is the where a particular rock type, stratigraphic unit, fossil or mineral species is first identified....

.

Awaruite is also known as josephinite in an occurrence in Josephine County, Oregon

Josephine County, Oregon

Josephine County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oregon. According to Oregon Geographic Names, the county is probably named after a stream in the area called Josephine Creek, which in turn is probably named after Virginia Josephine Rollins Ort. In 2010, its population was 82,713...

 where it is found as placer nuggets in stream channels and masses in serpentinized

Serpentinite

Serpentinite is a rock composed of one or more serpentine group minerals. Minerals in this group are formed by serpentinization, a hydration and metamorphic transformation of ultramafic rock from the Earth's mantle...

 portions of the Josephine peridotite. Some nuggets contain andradite

Andradite

Andradite is a species of the garnet group. It is a nesosilicate, with formula Ca3Fe2Si3O12.Andradite includes three varieties:* Melanite: Black in color, referred to as "titanian andradite"....

 garnet

Garnet

The garnet group includes a group of minerals that have been used since the Bronze Age as gemstones and abrasives. The name "garnet" may come from either the Middle English word gernet meaning 'dark red', or the Latin granatus , possibly a reference to the Punica granatum , a plant with red seeds...

.