Current Events

  • Atmospheric CO2 Level Tops 400 ppm
    During the week of May 13th, the CO2 level at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii topped 400 ppm rep...Read more

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    Atmospheric CO2 Level Tops 400 ppm

    During the week of May 13th, the CO2 level at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii topped 400 ppm repeatedly. Daily levels of CO2 can vary due to weather, and there are seasonal trends as well. The level of atmospheric greenhouse gases continues to increase, now over 120 ppm since the Industrial Revolution began. For more on the Keeling Curve, see http://keelingcurve.ucsd.edu/. Find out more about greenhouse gases and warming.
  • Massive Tornado Outbreak on Tornado Alley
    The week of May 19 brings dozens of tornadoes to Tornado Alley in the states of Oklahoma, Kansas, Io...Read more

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    Massive Tornado Outbreak on Tornado Alley

    The week of May 19 brings dozens of tornadoes to Tornado Alley in the states of Oklahoma, Kansas, Iowa, Illinois and Missouri. On May 20th, a massive tornado struck Moore, Oklahoma, devastating communities - destroying over 100 homes and hitting two elementary schools and a hospital - with many casualties and deaths. Our thoughts are with our friends and colleagues suffering from these storms. For more on the May 20th storms, see the NOAA Storm Prediction Center Storm Report.
  • Kansas Legislator Proposes Bill to Outlaw Sustainability Education
    A bill has been introduced in the Kansas legislature this week that would prohibit the promotion of ...Read more

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    Kansas Legislator Proposes Bill to Outlaw Sustainability Education

    A bill has been introduced in the Kansas legislature this week that would prohibit the promotion of sustainability. Here is a link to the one-page bill: http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2013_14/measures/documents/hb2366_00_0000.pdf. See report on Bloomberg News.

Common Nonsilicate Mineral Groups

Mineral Group Example Mineral Picture How People Use Them

Oxides Hematite (Fe2O3)
(Magnetite is another type of oxide!) 		Click for full size Ore of iron
Sulfides Pyrite (FeS2) Click for full size Known as fool’s gold
Sulfates Gypsum (CaSO4 (+2H2O)) Click for full size Used to make plaster
Halides Halite (NaCl) Click for full size Table salt
Carbonates Calcite (CaCO3) Click for full size Used to make cement
Native Elements Sulfur (S) Click for full size An ingredient of drugs and chemicals

* Click on images above for full size.

Last modified June 12, 2003 by Lisa Gardiner.

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The Fall 2010 issue of The Earth Scientist, focuses on rocks and minerals, including articles on minerals and mining, the use of minerals in society, and rare earth minerals, and includes 3 posters!

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Cool It! Game

Check out our online store - minerals, fossils, books, activities, jewelry, and household items!...more

Hematite

This mineral is called hematite. It is like a red crayon! Draw with it on a white streak plate and it will make a red line. Hematite is used to give red paint its color. ...more

Pyrite

This mineral sparkles like gold! But it is not really gold. It is called pyrite and you can find it in all sorts of rocks like sedimentary, metamorphic and igneous rocks. People call it "Fool's Gold" because...more

Gypsum

This is gypsum! It often forms as a layer of the bottom of a salty sea. Sometimes it forms in sandy areas like deserts and little sand grains are trapped between the gypsum crystals. This makes the crystals...more

Halite

What’s that on your chips? It’s a mineral called halite! Halite is salt. Take a close look at grains of salt. Don’t they look like mineral crystals? The sure way to tell of a mineral is halite is to taste...more

Calcite

This is calcite, the same mineral that makes the clam shells that you find on the beach! Perfect crystals of calcite allow you to do a special magic trick!...more

Sulfur

Yuck! What's that smell? When water mixes with the mineral sulfur, a chemical reaction causes a small amount of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) gas is produced. Hydrogen sulfide is the same gas that makes rotten...more

Try the calcite optical illusion!

You can use perfect calcite crystals to make an optical illusion called double refraction. Calcite has unique optical properties that split a ray of light into two beams that are bent at different angles...more

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