#fluorescent minerals

Calcite from the Buckwheat Dump at the Franklin Mineral Museum, Franklin, NJ.  Pictured under long wave, mid-wave, and short wave ultraviolet, and white light.

Fluorite on hyalite reportedly from the La Lupita Mine in Durango, Chihuahua, Mexico.  Pictured under short wave + long wave ultraviolet, white light, short wave only, and long wave only.  The hyalite is best under short wave uv and the fluorite is best under long wave uv.  

End members of the scheelite-powellite series.  Scheelite from Mt. Xuebaoding, China, and powellite with stilbite from Nasik, Maharashtra, India.  Pictured under short wave ultraviolet and white light.

Terlingua Calcite from the Little 38 Mine, Terlingua, Texas.  Pictured under long wave, mid-wave, and short wave ultraviolet and white light. 

Benitoite from the Benitoite Gem Mine in San Benito County, California, the type locality.  Benitoite is a rare blue barium titanium silicate mineral and is considered to be one of the rarest minerals/gemstones in the world.  It was discovered in 1907 and is the State Gemstone of California.  According to www.minerals.net, “The crystal structure of Benitoite is unique, and is the only significant mineral in its crystal class. It crystallizes in a rare hexagonal sub-class called ditrigonal-dipyramidal.”  Pictured under short wave ultraviolet, white light, and long wave ultraviolet.         

Massive fluorite from near Rodeo, Durango, Mexico under white light and long wave ultraviolet (black light).

Mystery rock from a mystery location picked up at a garage sale.  Shown under long wave ultraviolet and white light.  Some little bruises on the golden cauliflower side, but with luck I think they might buff out.

Barite crystals from the Glow Stick Pocket of the Linwood Mine, Buffalo, Scott County, Iowa, under long wave ultraviolet and white light.

I hope everyone had a safe Fourth of July!

Aragonite, some with sulfur, from Sicily, Italy.  Shown under white light, short wave ultraviolet, mid-wave ultraviolet, and long wave ultraviolet light.  Crazy colors.  Too bad the one on the bottom left isn’t brighter, but it’s got the best sulfur crystals.  

Fluorescent mineral display at the 2019 Dallas Gem and Mineral Society Annual show in November.  Illuminated by long wave ultraviolet on the left and short wave ultraviolet on the right.

“Third Find” Wollastonite (orange) in calcite (red) with minor barite (pale blue) from Franklin, New Jersey.  Shown under short wave ultraviolet and white light.  

Benitoite from the Dallas Gem Mine in San Benito County, California, the type locality.  Pictured under short wave ultraviolet light and white light.  Benitoite was discovered in 1907 and is the State Gemstone of California.  It crystalizes in the rare ditrigonal-dipyramidal crystal structure.  You can see this cool rock at a different angle here:   https://arockmaniac.tumblr.com/post/183595828185/benitoite-crystals-with-a-small-crystal-of-black

A moon?  A planet?  No, it’s a 4-inch orange calcite sphere, pictured under short wave ultraviolet, mid-wave ultraviolet, long wave ultraviolet and white light.   

Mixed fluorescent minerals including afghanite, calcite, albite, scapolite, phlogopite, and others yet to be identified from Badakhshan, Afghanistan.  Pictured under long wave ultraviolet, mid-wave ultraviolet, short wave ultraviolet, and white light.

Baratovite from the type locality of the Dara-i-Pioz Glacier (Dara-Pioz), Alai Range (Alayskiy), Tien Shan Mtn, Districts of Republican Subordination, Tajikistan under short wave ultraviolet, mid-wave ultraviolet, and white light.  The baratovite fluoresces bright bluish white under short wave UV.  Also incorportated in the specimen are agrellite (fluorescent pink), albite (fluorescent red), aegirine (black, non-fluorescent), and an unknown fluorescent green mineral.  The likely candidates for the unknown are willemite & thorite as they are known from the location.  The location is in an extremely remote and dangerous area accessible only by helicopter.  

Gemmy benitoite crystals with a tiny crystal of neptunite on a matrix of pale bluish crossite and snow white natrolite from the Dallas Gem Mine, San Benito County, California.  Benitoite is a rare blue barium titanium silicate mineral and is widely considered to be one of the rarest minerals/gemstones in the world.  Shown under white light, short wave ultraviolet, and long wave ultraviolet light.  While benitoite’s bright blue short wave fluorescence is a defining characteristic, the red fluorescence under long wave is more rare.  Benitoite is the state gemstone of California.  

Terlingua Calcite on the left and  fluorapatite from Wana, South Waziristan, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (formerly NWFP: North-West Frontier Province), Pakistan on the right.  Shown under short wave ultraviolet, long wave ultraviolet, mid-wave ultraviolet, and white light.  It’s interesting to me that they have opposite pink vs. blue responses to short wave vs. long wave UV.    

Hexagonal crystals of fluorapatite from Wana, South Waziristan, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (formerly NWFP: North-West Frontier Province), Pakistan, showing different colors under different wavelengths of ultraviolet light.  Shown under mid-wave ultraviolet light, white light, short wave ultraviolet, and long wave ultraviolet.  

Benitoite crystal from the Dallas Gem Mine, San Benito County, California.  While this one is “stony” as opposed to “gemmy,” it’s an extremely sharp and well shaped trigonal crystal measuring .9 cm along the edges.  Shown under white light and short wave ultraviolet light.  Benitoite is a rare barium titanium silicate mineral and is widely considered to be one of the rarest gems/minerals in the world.  It is the state gemstone of California, where it was first discovered in 1907.      

Benitoite on crossite and natrolite with a sprinkling of tiny joaquinite crystals from San Benito County, California.  Shown under white light, short wave ultraviolet and long wave ultraviolet light.  Benitoite is the State Gemstone of California.