Mindat.org Glossary of Mineralogical Terms

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• lithophysa
  Lithophysa (plural lithophysae) is a hollow, bubble-like, or rose-like spherulite, usually with a radial and concentric ...
• lithophysae
  Synonym of lithophysa
• sphärolith
  Synonym of spherulite
• sphaerolite
  Synonym of spherulite
• spherulite
  i. A rounded or spherical mass of acicular crystals, commonly of feldspar, radiating from a central point. Spherulites may range ...
• lithophyse
  Synonym of lithophysa
• pseudomorph
  A mineral sample with the external crystal form of one mineral and the internal chemistry of another; e.g., cubes of goethite ...
• iridize
  To make iridescent. Past tense iridised.Synonym of iridise
• nodule
  i. A small, irregularly rounded knot, mass, or lump of a mineral or mineral aggregate, normally having a warty or knobby surface ...
• cubane-like
  A bond configuration (topology) that broadly resembles the that of organic molecule cubane (C^8H^8). This topology is well ...
• pareidolia
  The phenomenon of perceiving meaningful content where there is none, as when something familiar such as a face or an animal form ...
• gopher hole
  Horizontal opening in wall of quarry, perhaps chambered or tee-headed in preparation for blasting. Also, an irregular pitting ...
• coyote hole
  A small tunnel driven horizontally into the rock at right angles to the face of the quarry. It has two or more crosscuts driven ...
• anchimonomineral
  Composed almost completely of one mineral
• cuboctahedron
  A cuboctahedron (also cubo-octahedron) is defined as a polyhedron with 8 triangular faces and 6 square faces. An ideal ...
• cubo-octahedron
  i. A crystal form that has faces of both the cube and the dodecahedron. ii. The combined isometric form of a cube modified by ...Synonym of cuboctahedron
• aschistite
  Synonym of aschistic
• mineraloid
  A mineral-like naturally-occurring geological material which is non-crystalline and not sufficiently definite in chemical ...
• homologous
  Homologous compounds are members of the same chemical family that differ from each other by a regular repeating unit, usually a ...
• homologue
  Synonym of homologous
• contract
  i. A bargain or agreement voluntarily made upon good consideration, between two or more persons capable of contracting to do, or ...
• tender
  i. Said of roof shale that tends to break up or crush under pressure into small fragments and that will not hold in any span over ...
• agreement
  The formal document by which the contractor and the authority mutually agree to comply with the requirements of the drawings, ...
• fire fly quartz
  Synonym of firefly quartz
• firefly quartz
  A marketing name for quartz crystals containing strongly fluorescent inclusions of a hydrocarbon, notably from .
• pleochroism
  i. The property of exhibiting different colors in different directions by transmitted polarized light. The head photos show ...
• asterism
  i. Starlike rays of light observed in some minerals when viewed from certain directions, particularly if the mineral is cut en ...
• speleothem
  A secondary mineral deposit formed in caves, most commonly composed of calcite, but can be various minerals. Includes ...
• pyrometamorphism
  Metamorphism produced by high heat at low pressure; it is a local, rapid and intense type of thermal metamorphism, resulting from ...
• pyrite decay
  Pyrite decay, commonly known as "pyrite disease", is the oxidation of iron sulfide and some other non-iron sulfide minerals, a ...
• qapf diagram
  Within the QAPFM classification scheme proposed by the IUGS, rocks with less than 90 vol-% mafic minerals are classified by their ...
• panidiomorphic
  A textural term for rocks in which all or almost all of the mineral constituents are idiomorphic or euhedral.
• sailing stones
  Synonym of sailing stone
• sailing stone
  A stone on a flat surface such as a dry lakebed that has been moved by unseen forces, leaving a trail behind it on the surface, ...
• crystal chemistry
  The study of the relations among chemical composition, internal structure, and the physical properties of crystalline ...
• porphyry deposit
  i. A deposit in which minerals of copper, molybdenum, gold, or less commonly tungsten and tin, are disseminated or occur in a ...
• metamorphism
  The mineralogical, chemical, and structural adjustment of solid rocks to physical and chemical conditions that have generally ...
• graphic
  i. Said of the texture of an igneous rock that results from the regular intergrowth of quartz and feldspar crystals. The quartz ...
• butyraceous
  Resembling butter in appearance, consistency, or chemical properties.
• wegwerfit
  Literally "throwawayite".Synonym of leaverite
• bezoar
  A bezoar or bezoar stone is a concretion or mass of indigestible material formed in the stomach or elsewhere in the ...
• evaluate
  To fix a valuation, but not to appraise.
• cone-in-cone structure
  i. A secondary structure occurring in marls, limestones, ironstones, coals, etc. It is a succession of small cones of approx. the ...
• pbdb localities
  The Paleobiology Database is a public database of paleontological data that anyone can use, maintained by an international ...
• gvp volcanoes
  Global Volcanism Program · Department of Mineral Sciences · National Museum of Natural History Smithsonian Institution
• wdxrf
  Synonym of wavelength-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy
• wds
  Synonym of wavelength-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy
• x-ray fluorescence
  X-ray fluorescence or XRF is the emission of characteristic "secondary" (or fluorescent) X-rays from a material that has been ...
• xrf
  Synonym of x-ray fluorescence
• ferrite
  i. Native iron, such as the terrestrial iron from Disko Island, Greenland. Ref: English ii. A general term applied to ...