UV Lights and Fluorescent Minerals - a fun side hobby to metal detecting !

[KingTotsalot]

It is convenient to work up 3 specimens and their photographs at a time. So here are 3 different specimens, all photographed with the Royal Chinese USB led microscope at 10X.

The first is Pickeringite, a water soluble colorless acicular effluorescent mineral, from the Le Centine di Cotoniano Mine, Chiusdino, Siena Province, Tuscany, Italy. The first picture is in natural light, and the second in LW 365nm.

The second pair of pictures are of Villiaumite, a toxicHalite Group mineral from the Aris Quarries, Aris, Windhoek Rural, Khomas Region, Namibia. And yes, KT did wash His Royal Hands thoroughly after remounting the specimen in a standard perky box! The first picture is in natural light and the second in LW 365nm.

Finally and not the least, is a self-collected specimen (mid-1980s) of water clear barite crystals on novaculite from the McKnight Barite Mine, Montgomery County, Arkansas. It is very difficult to get a good picture due to both their clarity and high luster. The first picture is in natural light and the second in LW 365nm….displaying a peculiar grayish white response. This piece was pulled from an egg carton that His Majesty had taken as freebie to the 2nd and 3rd CUSMMS gathering! Evidently no one bothered to look at what was in that carton! There is at least one other as nice as this one still in the carton. The specimens had not been washed or cleaned, they are as collected, but this one I cleaned up to get a better look at it.

Anyway, enjoy the photos!

 

[KingTotsalot]

Do you have any of these, or would you want one or two or three or four or............

hoser, KT has started a conversation with you, giving you the Royal Address!

 

[hoser]

Yep I got it your highness and thank you.

 

[KingTotsalot]

Royal Thanks to you, hoser for the offer!

 

[KingTotsalot]

Today KT has a couple of miniature fluorescent specimens to document. All pictures have a US dime for scale.

The first pair of pictures are of scheelite, the primary ore of tungsten. The specimen is from the Mittersill Scheelite Deposit, Mittersill, Zellam See District, Salzburg, Austria. The first picture is in natural light and the second in SW 254nm from two 4-watt lamps. The development of the first field usable SW UV lamps was based on the need of prospectors looking for Tungsten deposits during WWII. Tungsten carbide was an essential commodity, needed for steel cutting and lathe work to produce war machines.

The second pair of pictures are of Svabite from the now famous Langban Mine in Filipstad, Varmland Province, Sweden. This mine has over 300 known minerals and is the most famous locality in Europe for fluorescent minerals, only being surpassed by the Sterling Hill Mine in New Jersey for the variety! The first picture of the pair is in natural light and the second picture was taken using 2 4-watt SW 254nm lamps.

His Majesty does love specimens that are bland as these until they come under UV light!

 

[hoser]

Remarkable! What a difference that light makes.

 

[KingTotsalot]

hoser, about 15% of all known minerals fluoresce, and of those about 20% make nice bright specimens like these specimens…most are somewhat dull or otherwise not very spectacular….however, those bright ones are enough to get people excited!

 

[KingTotsalot]

KT is overloaded with fluorescent mineral pictures today so here are a few!

Many 1-1.5 mm spheres of Dawsonite from Selvena, Grosseto Province, Tuscany, Italy coat the flat surface of this rock. US dime for scale. First photo is in natural light, and second is in LW365nm. I held the UV Beast LW some 4 feet away and off center to get the fluorescent image, otherwise the camera light meter would have been completely washed out! The Dawsonite is associated with cinnabar in the mine’s orebody. No cinnabar on this specimen tho!

This pair of photos is of Autunite on matrix from the Marmagne Quarry, Saone-et-Loire, Bourgogne-Franche-Comte, France. The first picture is in natural light. The second is in LW 365nm, and the third is in SW 254nm. Note the bluish green response in LW and the greener response in SW, subtle but obvious when the two images are shown together. Also, it is surprising how much autunite is on the specimen that displays in UV that cannot be seen in natural light. From a classic European location for U-bearing secondary minerals. ENJOY!

 

[KingTotsalot]

Here are 3 additions to the Royal Collection that came in yesterday…….

The first pair of pictures are of a crust of Austinite crystals on goethite from its type locality...Gold Hill Mine, Gold Hill Mining District, Tooele County, Utah. 10X. The first picture is in natural light, and the second in LW 365nm. The mineral also fluoresces in SW 254nm but is moderately weak throughout the UV range.

The second pair of pictures are of Liebigite, a U-bearing mineral, from Les Mares III, Saint-Martin, Lodeve, Herault, Occitanie, France. One of many fluorescent U species from that group of U mines. The first image is in natural light and the second is in LW 365nm. His Majesty had to hold his weakest LW lamp nearly 1 foot away from the specimen, due to its very bright response to any UV! Otherwise the photometer on the microscope just would be completely washed out, resulting in a white image!

Finally, the 3rd pair of pictures is of Probertite, a boron mineral from the Ryan Mines, Furnace Creek Mining District, Inyo County, CA. This is a T/N but KT still photographed it at 10X. The first picture is in natural light, and the second is in LW 365nm. It has an odd looking pinkish pastel orange response in both LW and SW UV.

 

[KingTotsalot]

Here are a couple of interesting fluorescent minerals, one is U-bearing and the other a boron mineral.

The first pair of pictures are of Uranocircite from the Dieresis Mine, El Cabril, Horunacheulos, Cordoba, Spain. Taken at 10X. The Uranocircite is a yellow film that was exposed when a fracture was opened. First picture is in natural light and the second picture was taken with the weakest LW 365nm lamp in KT's ownership, held over a foot away from the specimen!

The second picture is of Jeremejevite, a boron mineral, from the Erongo Mountains, Erongo Region, Karibib Province, Namibia. It is a single crystal and was photographed also at 10X. The first image is in natural light and the second in LW 365nm filtered light, to be certain that no LW was reflecting from the specimen. Note that the white fluorescent rim of the crystal was the last to form, apparently showing a change of fluid chemistry near the end of crystallization. Even the blue center of the crystal is true fluorescence, not reflection of the blue overtones of the LW lamp. The lamp, KT's most powerful LW, was only 3 inches from the specimen, so the fluorescence is very weak. Noted in Henkel’s Glossary as fluorescing bluish to whitish. This crystal has decent transparency and is almost gemmy in appearance!

Enjoy the pictures!

 

[KingTotsalot]

Hmmmm, from the lack of views of the pictures in the past several postings, it appears that many Forum members do not realize that if you tap on a thumbnail image, it will enlarge for better viewing, and then tap again to go back to the thumbnails. Just a Royal Suggestion!

 

[KingTotsalot]

2 packages arrived at the Castle this morning by USPO! They contained 9 more fluorescent specimens for KT's Royal Collection! So here are the first 3 for your viewing pleasure:

The first fluorescent mineral pictures are of Andersonite from the Eureka Mine, Castell-estao, La Torre de Cabdella, Lleida, Catalunya, Spain. In natural light the grains have a slight yellowish color and are really not noticable without magnification. 10X. The first image is in natural light and the second in LW 365nm. This mineral fluoresces in both LW and SW UV with the typical bright bluish green noted in the literature.

The second pair of pictures are of Tacharanite from the Bramburg Quarry, Adelebsen, Gottingen, Lower Saxony, Germany. 10X. The first picture is in natural light and the second is in filtered LW 365nm.

The third pair of pictures are of shortite crystals in shale from the FMC Westvaco Mine, Green River Formation, W of Green River, Sweetwater County, Wyoming. 10X. The first picture shows the shortite crystals embedded in the Green River Fm shale in natural light, and the second picture is in filtered LW 365nm. Shortite is weakly fluorescent pale amber to orange, and most of the visible fluorescence is wiped out by the fluorescence of the highly orangish fluorescence of the organic shale matrix. However, if one looks closely at the top of the specimen, there are two shortite crystals that display fluorescence. One on the edge and one in the upper right corner that show weak orange coloration, and this is not from the filter used on the UV light. Dr. Charles Milton, a personal friend, was a primary investigator while with the USGS on the mineralogy of the Green River Formation and described many new species from it. The shale was deposited in an alkaline lake environment and contains many minerals now better known from alkalic igneous rocks around the world! The mines in the Green River Shale in Wyoming produce trona, among other industrial minerals. Shortite is a double carbonate of Na and Ca, thus the similar appearance of rhombohedral calcite.

 

[hoser]

Your highness the Andersonite looks pretty cool under UV. Well done sire.

 

[KingTotsalot]

Your highness the Andersonite looks pretty cool under UV. Well done sire.

You are right, hoser! It is just all the different responses from different minerals that fascinate KT!

 

[KingTotsalot]

It is a kinda blue green day in the Castle this Sunday, whenever KT checks out these new minerals with the Royal UV lights! LOL

The first pair of pictures are of Metanovacekite from the Clara Mine, Oberwolfach, Ortenaukeis, Frieburg Region, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany. 35X. The first picture is in natural light and the second is in LW 365nm. This U-bearing mineral a very pale greenish yellow in natural light, and is greenish yellow in both LW and SW UV.

The second pair of pictures are of an Okenite specimen from Pune Division, Maharstan, India. This is the first time KT ever put a UV Light on an okenite specimen and He has handled many of them down through the years. Imagine His Royal surprise when KT saw this in both LW and SW! The first picture is in natural light, a US dime for scale, and the second image is in LW 365nm. The fluorescence in SW 254nm is of similar color but a little weaker.

The 3rd set of pictures is of Brucite from Wakefield, Outcouais, Quebec, Canada. KT had purchased a nice yellow Brucite earlier thinking it would be fluorescent but it was not, but this one is! It is a T/N specimen, US dime for scale. First picture is in natural light, second is in LW 365nm. It truly is a pale bluish white with stronger white patches along the margin of the cleavage fragment...perhaps enhanced by damage to the crystal structure??

Anyway, enjoy the pictures!

 

[KingTotsalot]

Another 4 fluorescent micromounts that KT is working up to put in the Royal Collection!

The first pair of pictures are of Gibbsite from the Saga #1 Qy., Sagasen, Auenlandet, Vestfold og Telemark, Norway. 10X The entire mass is gibbsite. The first picture is in natural light and the second is in filtered LW 365nm. KT had to filter the LW or else the reflection of it would simply overwhelm the microscope photometer.

The second pair of pictures are of tiny clusters of Schoepite tuffs from Krunkelbach Valley U. Deposit, Menzenschwand, St. Blasion, Waldshut, Freiburg Region, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany. 35X. The first picture is in natural light and the second in filtered LW 365nm.

The 3rd pair are of tufts of Rabbittite from the Barbora Adit, Jachymov, Krusne Hory, Kariovy Vary Region, Czech Republic. His Majesty had the choice of photographing only one tuft at about 35X, or capturing several of them in the wider field of view at 15X, so He chose the later. The first picture is in natural light and the second in filtered LW 365nm. In this case filtering gives the same color as when examined with the Royal optical microscope and LWUV.

The final pair of photos are of some tiny Rutherfordine blebs. They would have looked like blebs at any magnification so KT chose 15X to show how numerous they are. This mineral is from the Uranus Mine, Kleinruckerswalde, Annaberg-Bucholz, Ezgebirgskeis, Saxony, Germany. The first picture is in natural light and the second in filtered LW 365nm. This specimen was one of the most difficult to photograph samples I have had to work with yet! It was mounted in a white box and after several attempts, KT finally realized that the box was fluorescing so strongly that it reflected a blue haze across the lens of the microscope. Finally He cut a piece of black non-reflective foam and stuck the specimen on it long enough to get an image!

KT hopes you enjoy the pictures!

 

[KingTotsalot]

Two more fluorescent micromounts that KT recently obtained!

The 1st pair of photos is of Whewellite from the Ronneburg U mine, Paitzdorf, Greiz District, Gera, Thuringia, Germany. 20X. The first picture is in natural light and the second was taken in LW 365nm. Whewellite is the typical fluorescent light bluish white of so many samples of this mineral.

The 2nd specimen is Phoenicochroite from the Potter Cramer Mine, Vulture Mining District, Wickenburg, Maricopa County, Arizona. The picture is at 15X in natural light. The mineral is very weakly fluorescent deep dark red. To see the fluorescence, KT’s most powerful LW 365nm light has to be ~ ½ inch from the piece so there was no way to take a photograph of the fluorescence. This mineral is the dark reddish brown material in the photograph.

Enjoy the pictures!

 

[stetam]

UV really makes them pop! Thanks for posting.

Steve

 

[KingTotsalot]

UV really makes them pop! Thanks for posting.

Steve

Royal Thanks for your comment, Steve! Hang in there because KT has recently purchased some interesting fossils that He expects will be fluorescent....a bit of research and KT discovered that about 1/2 of them typically do, so KT was willing to bet that these purchases may well, even tho it was not mentioned by the seller. Many times people just do not have a UV lamp to check them with! We shall see soon!

 

[KingTotsalot]

A fluorescent mineral AND a fluorescent fossil!

Pickeringite is a secondary water-soluble mineral. This specimen is from the Alum Mine, Itschi, Gurtnellen, Reuss Valley, Uri, Switzerland, which was actively mined for this mineral from the mid-1760s through 1778. It is still a collectible location for this mineral. The mass is a T/N but is composed of microscopic spheres and crystals of Pickeringite, so KT chose to photograph it at 15X. The first picture is in natural light and the second is in LW 365nm, the fluorescence is a strong white color in both long and short wave UV. We think we have an old history of mining in the American Southwest, but this site was opened over 250 years ago….and is still collectible today! At one time this site must have been a huge pyrite deposit, because Pickeringite is the common white efflorescence formed from the destruction of pyrite and deposition from the resulting highly acidic waters (rich in sulfate).

The second set of pictures are of a calcified colonial coral, known as Petosky Stone. It is the state stone of Michigan and most are recovered from the beaches of Lake Michigan, in northern Michigan. Interesting to KT, not only because of its fluorescence, but in the glacial outwash gravel deposits of Crowley’s Ridge in north-eastern Arkansas, are found very similar colonial corals, but ours are silicified and tan in color from oxidation. Likely the same source as those same gravel beds also contain sparse Lake Superior agates, again in orange, tan, and cream banding due to oxidation. The Mississippi River was once carrying all that glacial outwash from the western Great Lakes south into the Mississippi Embayment Region!

The first picture is in natural light, US quarter for scale, second is in SW 254nm….2 4-watt lamps used, one placed at the top of the picture and one at the bottom left. Those were cropped out of the photo. The final picture was taken with the edge of The Royal LW 365nm UVBeast. Again the center of the beam is so bright it causes the camera meter to wash out the color. The fluorescence is due to the stone’s composition...Calcite. This specimen was hand polished to show the nice detail of preservation of the coral! About 50% of Petosky Stones fluoresce, so KT bought this example on a gamble, and won! His Majesty has another on order and we shall see later this week if it fluoresces….

A bit of history: Michigan designated petoskey stone as the official state stone in 1965. Petoskey stone is actually not a stone but fossilized coral (Hexagonaria Pericarnata). About 350 million years ago, Michigan was covered by shallow seas that teemed with ocean life, particularly corals.

Enjoy the pictures!