Fun With Fluorescents

Smiley face made with uranium marbles under longwave ultraviolet (UV) light.

Two types of uranium marbles with a UV LED light for sale on eBay with FREE shipping: CLICK HERE

Franklin, New Jersey mineral with calcite glowing red-orange and the small specks of green (willemite) while being illuminated with longwave UV light.

Thunder egg from Oregon with quartz and agate(?) under white light and longwave UV light.

Calcite geode from Durango, Mexico under white light and shortwave UV light.

Fluorescent Wernerite (Scapolite)

This mineral produces a strong yellow color when exposed to longwave ultraviolet (UV) light. It is called wernerite a variation of scapolite. The label for this mineral lists it as being from Otter Bay, Canada. I could not find any reference to this locality but did find that scapolite was found at Otter Lake, Québec, Canada.


Specimen is approximately 4 cm x 4 cm x 3 cm in size.


H.C. Dake 1953 book The Uranium and Fluorescent Minerals describes wernerite 'is generally regarded as one of the strongest of all long wave mineral "fluorescents."'.


According to mindat.org this mineral was named in 1800 from Abraham Gottlob Werner (1749-1817) who was a German mineralogy professor.


It is for sale on eBay CLICK HERE

Clement Museum Fluorites

Fluorite specimens seen at the Ben E. Clement Mineral Museum display at the KYANA Geological Society 2010 Show in Louisville, Kentucky.

Blue Fluorite

Blue fluorite specimen was at the Ben E. Clement Mineral Museum display at the KYANA Geological Society 2010 Show in Louisville, Kentucky.

Calcite Crystals

Calcite specimen was at the Ben E. Clement Mineral Museum display at the KYANA Geological Society 2010 Show in Louisville, Kentucky.  It might be mixed in with some purple fluorite.

Galena on Calcite

Galena with calcite mined at Ozark Lead mine in St. Joseph Lead District, Missouri.  On display at Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History.

Tyrolite

Tyrolite mineral found at Brixlegg, Tyrol, Austria.  Displayed at Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History.

Pyromorphite

Mineral Pyromorphite found at Bunker Hill mine in Kellogg, Idaho.  Displayed at mineral hall of Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History.

Datolite

Picture of Datolite mineral with copper from Lake Superior district, Michigan.  While doing research on fossils and rocks to find in upper peninsula of Michigan I came across "Rockhounding Trip Through Michigan's Upper Peninsula August 2008 Report by Jim Adams".  His report talks about finding Datolite for the first time in Michigan.

Fluorite Crystals

These first pictures are of what appears to be a purple fluorite cube then surrounded by a second fluorite clear cube.

Calcite - Jennings County Indiana

Picture of a calcite specimen from Jennings County, Indinana (home of the North Vernon Quarries). This mineral is on display at the Indiana State Museum.

Calcite is the most common mineral found in the state of Indiana. It calcium carbonite that makes up calcite is the primary material of the state's limestone.

Fluorite From Indiana

Fluorite found in Allen County, Indiana. This specimen is on display at the Indiana State Museum.

Fluorite is calcium fluoride.

Dolomite From Indiana

Here are some specimens of the dolomite on display at the Indiana State Museum in Indianapolis, Indiana. These minerals were found in Harrison County, Indiana. If I had to guess they are probably from the quarry near Corydon.

Dolomite is calcium magnesium carbonate.

Watermelon Tourmaline

According to Wikipedia, tourmaline is a crystal silicate mineral combined with other elements to produce different colors. This variety is called watermelon since it has the colors and look of watermelon slice. The compounds that make it up could be elbaite (green=verdelite) or liddicoatlite.

These specimens are from Brazil and are on display at the Indiana University Southeast (IUS) in New Albany Life Sciences Building in the Geosciences department. They were part of the Jimmy C. Davis collection.