We had been out rock hounding with our good friends in Arizona when we stumbled on this interesting agate. NOTE: If you are making plans to rock hunt in Arizona… make sure that you do not go near someone else’s claim, it’s still the wild West. And be sure to pay attention and steer clear of old pits that can be hidden in the brush. Oh, and snakes too!
Color is the most eye-catching feature of many minerals. Some minerals will always have a similar color, such as gold, whereas some minerals, such as quartz and calcite, come in all colors. The presence and intensity of certain elements will determine a specific mineral's color. Minerals with an inherent color (i.e. all specimens of the mineral are the same color) have essential elements in them which cause their color. Good examples are azurite and malachite, which have their strong blue and green color due to their copper in their atomic structure. But there are many minerals which have slight additions of color-causing elements in some specimens that cause it to be a different color. Purple color is caused by traces of the element iron. The amount of iron present determines the intensity of the color.
We also ran across something that NASA had misplaced. (see photo) Went over to it to investigate and determined that it was a concrete mixer off a cement truck! funny...
This image is for illustrative purposes only.
The colors shown are accurate within the constraints of lighting, photography and the color accuracy of your screen.
All of our macro photographs are of our own stone; cut and polished, exposing the natural beauty inside.
(All photos shown are watermarked for online viewing. The purchased art will not show watermark.)
©Light the Earth, All Rights Reserved
Copyrighted. No Usage Without Permission
Color is the most eye-catching feature of many minerals. Some minerals will always have a similar color, such as gold, whereas some minerals, such as quartz and calcite, come in all colors. The presence and intensity of certain elements will determine a specific mineral's color. Minerals with an inherent color (i.e. all specimens of the mineral are the same color) have essential elements in them which cause their color. Good examples are azurite and malachite, which have their strong blue and green color due to their copper in their atomic structure. But there are many minerals which have slight additions of color-causing elements in some specimens that cause it to be a different color. Purple color is caused by traces of the element iron. The amount of iron present determines the intensity of the color.
We also ran across something that NASA had misplaced. (see photo) Went over to it to investigate and determined that it was a concrete mixer off a cement truck! funny...
This image is for illustrative purposes only.
The colors shown are accurate within the constraints of lighting, photography and the color accuracy of your screen.
All of our macro photographs are of our own stone; cut and polished, exposing the natural beauty inside.
(All photos shown are watermarked for online viewing. The purchased art will not show watermark.)
©Light the Earth, All Rights Reserved
Copyrighted. No Usage Without Permission
