None of 2,500 species described is known from more than five locations, and for a few of them the total global supply could fit in a thimble. The researchers say it is important to hunt down these oddities because they contain fundamental information about the construction of our planet. Some will also undoubtedly have properties that are useful in technological applications. The list appears in a paper about to be published in the journal American Mineralogis Read more
Afghanistan may have more than a trillion dollars worth of untapped mineral deposits, a spokesman for the ministry of mines has suggested. The statement came after reports in the New York Times of the work of a team of Pentagon officials and US geologists. They discovered large quantities of iron and copper as well as valuable deposits of lithium. Read more
U.S. Identifies Vast Riches of Minerals in Afghanistan
The United States has discovered nearly $1 trillion in untapped mineral deposits in Afghanistan, far beyond any previously known reserves and enough to fundamentally alter the Afghan economy and perhaps the Afghan war itself, according to senior American government officials. The previously unknown deposits - including huge veins of iron, copper, cobalt, gold and critical industrial metals like lithium - are so big and include so many minerals that are essential to modern industry that Afghanistan could eventually be transformed into one of the most important mining centres in the world. Read more
Minerals evolved along with life The number of minerals in the solar system has increased through time, and some minerals on Earth exist because of life
Think evolution is something that happens only to plants and animals? Think again, say scientists who point out that evolution - change through time - happens in the mineral kingdom as well. As our solar system has aged, the number of types of minerals it contains has burgeoned from only a dozen or so to well over 4,000. And about two-thirds of today's minerals either directly or indirectly evolved thanks to the presence of life on Earth.
An exhibit of natural mineral wonders, "Minerals: The Duval Collection," is on display through Mary 26 at the Museum of the Rockies. The collection consists of numerous pieces from around the world, all chosen for their beauty of form and colour, exhibit staff said. Many of the largest crystals are exhibited without physical barriers of any kind, providing visitors an opportunity for up-close exploration of these gigantic crystals.