Minerals.net

Although many people do not think about Ice as a mineral, it is a mineral just as muc...  More

Although many people do not think about Ice as a mineral, it is a mineral just as much as Quartz is. Ice is a naturally occurring compound with a defined chemical formula and crystal structure, thus making it a legitimate mineral. Its only limitation, in comparison to all other minerals, is that it is not stable at room temperature.

Ice is colorless, unless impure. Flaws and cracks cause it to have a white color. Snow is colorless, but the reflections of its crystal sides cause it to appear white. Snow has a most interesting crystal habit. Each crystal flake of snow forms a unique hexagonal pattern, with intriguing and interesting shapes that are all very different. Snow crystals cling together to form snowflakes.

Hailstones are formed in thunderclouds, where small water particles are tossed about from the wind, accumulating layers of Ice. When the Hailstones get heavy and can no longer remain suspended in a cloud, they fall to the earth. Hailstones up to 5 inches (13 cm) in diameter have  fallen in certain regions.

Glaciers are formed when snow fails to melt and accumulates, and eventually starts "flowing" downhill like a river. When a moving glacier reaches a body of water, it forms Icebergs, or floating "mountains" of compressed snow.  Hide

Ilmenite is one of the most significant ore s of the metal titanium. It is mined as a...  More

Ilmenite is one of the most significant ores of the metal titanium. It is mined as an important industrial mineral in several deposits throughout the world. Many of those deposits are in heavy placer sands. Ilmenite is very similar in structure to Hematite, and is essentially the same as Hematite with roughly half the iron replaced with titanium. Ilmenite is named after the locality of the Ilmen Mountains, which are a part of the Southern Urals of Russia.
  Hide

div Inesite is an uncommon but appealing mineral that forms in attractive pink colors...  More

  Hide

div Iodargyrite is an ore of silver, and is very similar to Chlorargyrite and Bromrar...  More

  Hide

Iron nickel is technically a group of scientifically classified minerals. Most minera...  More

Iron-nickel is technically a group of scientifically classified minerals. Most mineral collectors do not make a distinction between the individually-named minerals in this group, and refer to specimens as Iron or Iron-Nickel. Most Iron-nickel is of extraterrestrial origin, in the form of meteorites. Hundreds of meteors fall toward earth every day, but most of them burn up in the atmosphere. The few that make it to earth usually land in water, and the few that land on the ground are generally small. Meteorites usually contain a crust, which forms when they are partially molten (from the heat generated by their speed) in the atmosphere, and solidify when they cool down by landing on earth.

There are some natural deposits of terrestrial Iron-nickel, but they are rare and limited. Crystals are uncommon, although some meteorites show etched crystals on polished faces, known as widmanstatten patterns. Iron-nickel (terrestrial or extraterrestrial) develops a coating of rust if washed or if kept in a humid area. If a specimen must be washed with water, it should be thoroughly dried.

Click here for a detailed explanation on Iron-nickel in meteorites.  Hide