Mineral Spotlight: Vanadinite
Vanadinite is not a mineral that is talked about very much, but it should be. It is a rare mineral, and, with the chemical formula Pb5(VO4)3Cl, it is one of the largest sources of the metal vanadium as...
View ArticleMineral Spotlight: Garnet
This week the mineral spotlight is garnet, a very versatile and beautiful mineral. Garnet is a silicate mineral with general formula X3Y2(SiO4)3. The variations of elements in the X and Y spots in the...
View ArticleMineral Spotlight: Feldspar
Feldspar is the most common mineral in the earth’s crust. It makes up part of most igneous rocks, as well as part of many metamorphic rocks. In fact, much of the moon (the brighter and more white...
View ArticleMineral Spotlight: Diamonds, Sapphires and Proustite
Okay people, spring is here so I thought, “What better to do with this column than to talk about gemstones?” This is a hot topic this time of year, and some may find themselves scrambling and realizing...
View ArticleMineral Spotlight: Alabaster
For the last Spotlight of the year, I thought I would venture into the folklore of minerals, focusing on the ancient uses and beliefs around the mineral alabaster. Alabaster is not the technical name...
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