MINERALS

Bringing a novel approach to a classic problem, researchers have revealed how changes in ocean chemistry over the past 2 billion years have left an imprint on volcanic rocks formed in island arcs. Island arcs, which...
During the late middle Pleistocene, between 300 and 400 thousand years ago, at least three ancient elephant relatives died near a river in the Kashmir Valley of South Asia. Not long after, they were covered in...

Illegal gold mining eats into Peruvian Amazon

On the banks of the Madre de Dios river, dredges work day and night in search of gold, part of a scourge of illegal...

New research unveils extreme complexity in formation of rare earth mineral vital for tech industry

In a new study, researchers from Trinity have unveiled that myriad, intricate factors influence the genesis and chemistry of bastnäsite and rare earth carbonates,...

Green mystery: Plumbian orthoclase reveals hidden resources

Plumbian orthoclase is a bit of a mystery, but this unique Aussie mineral is part of a mining industry revolution. The mineral's glowy green...

Coal miners in North Dakota unearth a mammoth tusk buried for thousands of years

The first person to spot it was a shovel operator working the overnight shift, eyeing a glint of white as he scooped up a...

Newly created ultra-hard material rivals diamond

Scientists have solved a decades-long puzzle and unveiled a near unbreakable substance that could rival diamond as the hardest material on Earth. The research...

Looking for lithium-bearing pegmatites

The commercial importance of lithium is ever-growing, and its production is globally dominated by lithium-cesium-tantalum (LCT) pegmatites. These are spectacular rocks featuring impressive ultra-coarse...

Mining asteroids: A new method to extract metals from asteroids

Extraterrestrial mining and metal processing are key strategies for space exploration. In a new study in Scientific Reports, Rodolfo Marin Rivera, and a team...

Superdeep diamonds provide a window on supercontinent growth

Diamonds contain evidence of the mantle rocks that helped buoy and grow the ancient supercontinent Gondwana from below, according to new research from a...

Minerals in ancient meteorites offer insights into the origin of most of the Earth’s surface

Dr. Alice Stephant, an astrophysicist, is helping to solve a longstanding mystery about water on Earth: where it came from. Scientists long thought that water,...

Crucial third clue to finding new diamond deposits

Curtin University researchers studying diamond-rich rocks from Western Australia’s Argyle volcano have identified the missing third key ingredient needed to bring valuable pink diamonds...

Scientists find ‘missing ingredient’ for pink diamonds

Scientists said on Tuesday they have found the "missing ingredient" for pink diamonds, some of the world's most expensive stones due their rarity and...

The quest to make a crystal harder than diamonds

Labs across the world have been competing to build “superhard” materials – and they are finally succeeding. At the centre of our planet, the weight...

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