Science, Tech, Math Science Mineral Photo Gallery and Chemical Composition Share Flipboard Email Print Science Chemistry Chemistry in Everyday Life Basics Chemical Laws Molecules Periodic Table Projects & Experiments Scientific Method Biochemistry Physical Chemistry Medical Chemistry Famous Chemists Activities for Kids Abbreviations & Acronyms Biology Physics Geology Astronomy Weather & Climate by Anne Marie Helmenstine, Ph.D. Dr. Helmenstine holds a Ph.D. in biomedical sciences and is a science writer, educator, and consultant. She has taught science courses at the high school, college, and graduate levels. Updated March 08, 2017 01 of 95 Mineral Photographs and Their Chemical Composition Copper sulfate is a mineral you can use to grow amazing blue crystals. J A Steadman / Getty Images Welcome to the mineral photo gallery. Minerals are natural inorganic chemical compounds. These are photographs of minerals, along with a look at their chemical composition. 02 of 95 Trinitite - Mineral Specimens This is a sample of trinitite, mounted in a specimen case. Trinitite, also known as atomsite or Alamogordo glass, is a type of glass formed by the world's first nuclear explosion, the Trinity Test. Anne Helmenstine Trinitite consists mainly of quartz with feldspar. Most trinitite is light to olive green, although it is found in other colors, too.The corresponding Russian material is called Kharitonchiki (singular: kharitonchik), which formed at ground zero from the Soviet atmospheric nuclear tests at the Semipalatinsk Test Site in Kazakhstan. 03 of 95 Agate - Mineral Specimens Agate is chalcedony (a cryptocrystalline quartz) that displays concentric banding. Red-banded agate is also called sard or sardonyx. Adrian Pingstone 04 of 95 Amethyst - Mineral Specimens Amethyst is purple quartz, a silicate. Jon Zander 05 of 95 Alexandrite - Mineral Specimens This 26.75-carat cushion-cut alexandrite is bluish green in daylight and purplish red in incandescent light. David Weinberg 06 of 95 Ametrine - Mineral Specimens Ametrine is also called trystine or bolivianite. Both citrine (golden quartz) and amethyst (purple quartz) exist in the same stone. Temperature is one of the factors which can effect the color change. Wela49, Wikipedia Commons 07 of 95 Apatite Crystals - Mineral Specimens Apatite is the name given to a group of phosphate minerals. OG59, Wikipedia Commons 08 of 95 Aquamarine - Mineral Specimens Aquamarine is a translucent pale blue or turquoise variety of beryl. Wela49, Wikipedia Commons 09 of 95 Arsenic - Mineral Specimens Natural arsenic with quartz and calcite, from Ste. Marie-aux-mines, Alsace, France. Specimen is at the Natural History Museum, London. Pure arsenic is found in many forms, or allotropes, including yellow, black, and gray. Aram Dulyan 10 of 95 Aventurine - Mineral Specimens Aventurine is a form of quartz which contains mineral inclusions that give a glistening effect known as aventurescence. Simon Eugster, Creative Commons 11 of 95 Azurite - Mineral Specimens "Velvet Beauty" azurite from Bisbee, Arizona, US. Cobalt123, Flickr Azurite is a deep blue copper mineral. Exposure to light, heat and air all can fade its color. 12 of 95 Azurite - Mineral Specimens Crystals of azurite. Géry Parent Azurite is a soft blue copper mineral. 13 of 95 Benitoite - Mineral Specimens These are blue crystals of the rare barium titanium silicate mineral called benitoite. Géry Parent 14 of 95 Rough Beryl Crystals - Mineral Specimens Beryls (emeralds) from the Emerald Hollow Mine in Hiddenite, NC. Anne Helmenstine 15 of 95 Beryl or Emerald Crystals - Mineral Specimens Emerald crystals from the Emerald Hollow Mine in Hiddenite, NC. Anne Helmenstine Emerald is the green gemstone form of the mineral beryl. Beryl is a beryllium aluminum cyclosilicate. 16 of 95 Borax - Mineral Specimens This is a photo of borax crystals from California. Borax is sodium tetraborate or disodium tetraborate. Borax has white monoclinic crystals. Aramgutang, wikipedia.org 17 of 95 Carnelian - Mineral Specimens Carnelian is a reddish type of chalcedony, which is cryptocrystalline silica. Wela49, Wikipedia Commons 18 of 95 Chrysoberyl - Mineral Specimens The mineral or gemstone chrysoberyl is a beryllium aluminate. This is a faceted yellow chrysoberyl gemstone. David Weinberg 19 of 95 Chrysocolla - Mineral Specimens This is a polished nugget of the mineral chrysocolla. Chrysocolla is a hydrated copper silicate. Grzegorz Framski 20 of 95 Citrine - Mineral Specimens 58-carat faceted citrine. Wela49, Wikipedia Commons 21 of 95 Copper Form - Mineral Specimens Piece of native copper measuring ~1½ inches (4 cm) in diameter. Jon Zander 22 of 95 Copper - Native - Mineral Specimens Crystals of copper metal on a sample, with a penny to show scale. U.S. Geological Survey 23 of 95 Native Copper - Mineral Specimens This is a specimen of native copper from the Willems Miner Collection. Noodle snacks, Wikipedia Commons 24 of 95 Cymophane or Catseye - Mineral Specimens Cymophane or catseye chrysoberyl exhibits chatoyancy due to needle-like inclusions of rutile. David Weinberg 25 of 95 Diamond Crystal - Mineral Specimens Rough Octohedral Diamond Crystal. USGS Diamond is a crystal form of carbon. 26 of 95 Diamond Picture - Mineral Specimens This is an AGS ideal cut diamond from Russia (Sergio Fleuri). Salexmccoy, Wikipedia Commons Diamond is a carbon mineral which is highly valued as a gemstone. 27 of 95 Emerald Crystals - Mineral Specimens Colombian emerald crystals. Productos Digitales Moviles Emerald is the green gemstone form of the mineral beryl. 28 of 95 Colombian Emerald - Mineral Specimens The 858-carat Galacha Emerald hails from the La Vega de San Juan mine in Gachalá, Colombia. Thomas Ruedas Many gemstone-quality emeralds come from Colombia. 29 of 95 Emerald Crystal - Mineral Specimens Uncut emerald crystal, a green gemstone beryl. Ryan Salsbury Emerald is the green gemstone variety of beryl, a beryllium aluminum cyclosilicate. 30 of 95 Fluorite Crystals - Mineral Specimens Fluorite or fluorspar is an isometric mineral composed of calcium fluoride. Photolitherland, Wikipedia Commons 31 of 95 Fluorite or Fluorspar Crystals - Mineral Specimens These are fluorite crystals on display at the National History Museum in Milan, Italy. Fluorite is the crystal form of the mineral calcium fluoride. Giovanni Dall'Orto The molecular formula for fluorite and fluorspar as CaF2. 32 of 95 Garnet - Faceted Garnet - Mineral Specimens This is a faceted garnet. Wela49, Wikipedia Commons 33 of 95 Garnets in Quartz - Mineral Specimens Sample from China of garnet crystals with quartz. Géry Parent 34 of 95 Garnet - Mineral Specimens Garnet from the Emerald Hollow Mine in Hiddenite, North Carolina. Anne Helmenstine There are six species of garnet, which are categorized according to their chemical composition. The general formula for garnet is X3Y2(SiO4)3. Although garnets are commonly seen as red or purplish-red stones, they can occur in any color. 35 of 95 Gold Nugget - Mineral Specimens Nugget of native gold from the Washington mining district, California. Aramgutan, Wikipedia Commons 36 of 95 Halite or Salt Crystals - Mineral Specimens Crystals of halite, which is sodium chloride or table salt. from "Minerals in Your World" (USGS and Mineral Information Institute) 37 of 95 Rock Salt Crystals - Mineral Specimens Photograph of crystals of rock salt, natural sodium chloride. U.S. Geological Survey 38 of 95 Halite - Mineral Specimens Photograph of halite, or salt crystals. U.S. Geological Survey 39 of 95 Heliodor Crystal - Mineral Specimens Heliodor is also known as golden beryl. Parent Géry 40 of 95 Heliotrope or Bloodstone - Mineral Specimens Heliotrope, also known as bloodstone, is one of the gemstone forms of the mineral chalcedony. Ra'ike, Wikipedia Commons 41 of 95 Hematite - Mineral Specimens Hematite crystallizes in the rhombohedral crystal system. USGS 42 of 95 Hiddenite - Mineral Specimens Hiddenite is a green form of spodumene (LiAl(SiO3)2. The gemstone was discovered in North Carolina. Anne Helmenstine 43 of 95 Iolite - Mineral Specimens Iolite is the name for gemstone-quality cordierite. Iolite typically is violet blue, but may be seen as a yellowish brown stone. Vzb83, Wikipedia Commons 44 of 95 Jasper - Mineral Specimens Polished orbicular jasper from Madagascar. Vassil, Wikipedia Commons 45 of 95 Jasper - Mineral Specimens Jasper from the Emerald Hollow Mine in Hiddenite, NC. Anne Helmenstine Jasper is an opaque, impure mineral composed of silica. It can be found in nearly any color or combination of colors. 46 of 95 Kyanite - Mineral Specimens Crystals of kyanite. Aelwyn (Creative Commons) Kyanite is a sky-blue metamorphic mineral. 47 of 95 Labradorite or Spectrolite - Mineral Specimens This is an example of the feldspar known as labradorite or spectrolite. Anne Helmenstine 48 of 95 Mica - Mineral Specimens Mica from the Emerald Hollow Mine in Hiddenite, NC. Anne Helmenstine 49 of 95 Malachite - Mineral Specimens Nugget of polished malachite. Calibas, Wikipedia Commons 50 of 95 Monazite - Mineral Specimens Monazite from the Emerald Hollow Mine, Hiddenite, NC. Anne Helmenstine 51 of 95 Morganite Crystal - Mineral Specimens Example of uncut morganite crystal, a pink gemstone version of beryl. This specimen came from a mine outside of San Diego, CA. Trinity Minerals Morganite is the pink gemstone variety of beryl. 52 of 95 Olivine in Lava - Mineral Specimens The green sand of the green sand beach comes from the olivine, which is one of the first crystals to form as lava cools. Anne Helmenstine 53 of 95 Green Sand - Mineral Specimens Handful of green sand from the Green Sand Beach at the southern tip of the island of Hawaii. This sand is green because it is made from olivine from a volcano. Anne Helmenstine 54 of 95 Olivine or Peridot - Mineral Specimens Gemstone-quality olivine (chrysolite) is called peridot. Olivine is one of the most common minerals. It is a magnesium iron silicate. S Kitahashi, wikipedia.org 55 of 95 Opal - Banded - Mineral Specimens Massive opal from Barco River, Queensland, Australia. Photo of specimen at the Natural History Museum, London. Aramgutang, Wikipedia Commons 56 of 95 Opal Specimen - Mineral Specimens Rough opal from Nevada. Chris Ralph 57 of 95 Opal - Rough - Mineral Specimens Veins of opal in a iron-rich rock from Australia. Photo taken from specimen at the Natural History Museum, London. Aramgutang, Wikipedia Commons 58 of 95 Platinum Group Metal Ore - Mineral Specimens Photograph of platinum metal ore, which contains many of the metals from the platinum group. A penny is included to indicate size of the sample. U.S. Geological Survey 59 of 95 Pyrite - Mineral Specimens The mineral pyrite is an iron sulfide. Anescient, Wikipedia Commons 60 of 95 Pyrite or Fool's Gold Crystals - Mineral Specimens Pyrite is sometimes called Fool's Gold. Crystals of pyrite (fool's gold) from Huanzala, Peru. Fir0002, Wikipedia Commons 61 of 95 Quartz - Mineral Specimens Crystals of quartz, the most abundant mineral in the earth's crust. Ken Hammond, USDA 62 of 95 Ruby - Mineral Specimens Ruby crystal before faceting. Ruby is the name given to the red variety of the mineral corundum (aluminum oxide). Adrian Pingstone, wikipedia.org 63 of 95 Ruby - Mineral Specimens Ruby from the Emerald Hollow Mine in Hiddenite, NC. Anne Helmenstine Ruby is the red gemstone form of the mineral corundum. 64 of 95 Ruby - Mineral Specimens My son found this pretty ruby in the creek at the Emerald Hollow Mine. Anne Helmenstine Ruby is the red variety of the mineral corundum. 65 of 95 Cut Ruby - Mineral Specimens 1.41-carat faceted oval ruby. Brian Kell 66 of 95 Rutile Needles - Mineral Specimens The tuft of brown needles protruding from this quartz crystal are rutile. Rutile is the most common form of natural titanium dioxide. Natural corundum (rubies and sapphires) contain rutile inclusions. Aramgutang 67 of 95 Quartz with Rutile - Mineral Specimens This quartz crystal contains needles of the mineral rutile, which is titanium dioxide. The filaments look like strands of gold - very pretty. Anne Helmenstine 68 of 95 Sapphire - Mineral Specimens Sapphire from Emerald Hollow Mine, Hiddenite, North Carolina. Anne Helmenstine Sapphires are corundum in every color except red, which is called ruby. 69 of 95 Star Sapphire - Star of India - Mineral Specimens The Star of India is a 563.35 carat (112.67 g) grayish blue star sapphire that was mined in Sri Lanka. Daniel Torres, Jr. Sapphire is a gemstone form of the mineral corundum. 70 of 95 Sapphire - Mineral Specimens 422.99-carat Logan sapphire, National Museum of Natural History, Washington D.C. Thomas Ruedas Sapphire is a gemstone form of cordundum. 71 of 95 Silver Crystals - Mineral Specimens Photograph of crystals of silver metal, with a penny included to indicate the size of the sample. U.S. Geological Survey 72 of 95 Smoky Quartz Crystals - Mineral Specimens Crystals of smoky quartz. Ken Hammond, USDA Smoky quartz is a silicate. 73 of 95 Sodalite - Mineral Specimens The sodalite mineral group includes blue specimens such as lazurite and sodalite. This specimen comes from the creek running through the Emerald Hollow Mine in Hiddenite, NC. Anne Helmenstine 74 of 95 Spinel - Mineral Specimens Spinels are a class of minerals that crystallize in the cubic system. They can be found in a variety of colors. S. Kitahashi 75 of 95 Sugilite or Luvulite - Mineral Specimens Sugilite or luvulite is an uncommon pink to purple cyclosilicate mineral. Simon Eugster 76 of 95 Sugilite - Mineral Specimens Mineral Photo Gallery Sugilite tile. Sugilite is also known as luvulite. Agapetile, wikipedia.org 77 of 95 Sulfur Crystals - Mineral Specimens These are crystals of sulfur, one of the nonmetallic elements. U.S. Geological Survey 78 of 95 Sulfur - Mineral Specimens Crystals of the nonmetallic element sulfur. Smithsonian Institution 79 of 95 Sunstone - Oligoclase Sunstone - Mineral Specimens Mineral Photo Gallery Sunstone is a plagioclase feldspar that is a sodium calcium aluminum silicate. Sunstone contains inclusions of red hematite that give it a sun-spangled appearance, leading to its popularity as a gemstone. Ra'ike, Creative Commons 80 of 95 Tanzanite - Mineral Specimens Tanzanite is blue-purple gemstone-quality zoisite. Wela49, Wikipedia Commons 81 of 95 Topaz - Mineral Specimens Topaz is a mineral (Al2SiO4(F,OH)2) that forms orthorhombic crystals. Pure topaz is clear, but impurities can tint it a variety of colors. United States Geological Survey Topaz is an aluminum silicate mineral. 82 of 95 Topaz Crystal - Mineral Specimens Crystal of colorless topaz from Pedra Azul, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Tom Epaminondas Topaz is an aluminum silicate mineral that occurs in a wide variety of colors, though the pure crystal is colorless. 83 of 95 Red Topaz - Mineral Specimens Crystal of red topaz at the British Natural History Museum. Aramgutang, Wikipedia Commons Topaz which contains minute quantities of impurities is colored. 84 of 95 Tourmaline - Mineral Specimens Tri-color elbaite tourmaline crystals with quartz from the Himalaya Mine, California, USA. Chris Ralph 85 of 95 Green Tourmaline - Mineral Specimens Tourmaline is a crystalline silicate mineral. It occurs in a variety of colors owing to the presence of several possible metal ions. This is an emerald-cut tourmaline gemstone. Wela49, Wikipedia Commons 86 of 95 Turquoise - Mineral Specimens Turquoise pebble that has been smoothed by tumbling. Adrian Pingstone Turquoise is an opaque blue-to-green mineral consisting of a hydrous phosphate of copper and aluminum. 87 of 95 Spessartine Garnet - Mineral Specimens Spessartine or spessartite is manganese aluminum garnet. This is a specimen of spessartine garnet crystals from Fujian Province, China. Noodle snacks, Willems Miner Collection 88 of 95 Almandine Garnet - Mineral Specimens Almandine garnet, which is also known as carbuncle, is an iron-aluminum garnet. This type of garnet is commonly found in a deep red color. This is an almandine garnet crystal in gneissic matrix. Eurico Zimbres and Tom Epaminondas 89 of 95 Tin Ore - Mineral Specimens Photograph of tin ore in a vial, with a penny included to show the size of the sample. U.S. Geological Survey 90 of 95 Rare Earth Ore - Mineral Specimens Photograph of a rare earth ore, which contains several rare earth elements. A penny is included to indicate the size of the sample. U.S. Geological Survey 91 of 95 Manganese Ore - Mineral Specimens Photograph of manganese ore, with a penny to indicate the scale of the the sample size. U.S. Geological Survey 92 of 95 Mercury Ore - Mineral Specimens Photograph of mercury ore, with a penny included to show sample size. U.S. Geological Survey 93 of 95 Trinitite or Alamogordo Glass - Mineral Specimens Trinitite, also known as atomsite or Alamogordo glass, is the glass produced when the Trinity nuclear bomb test melting the ground of the desert near Alamogordo, New Mexico on July 16, 1945. Most of the mildly radioactive glass is light green. Shaddack, Creative Commons License Trinitite is a mineraloid, since it is glassy rather than crystalline. 94 of 95 Chalcanthite Crystals - Mineral Specimens These are crystals of copper sulfate which forms a mineral known as chalcanthite. Ra'ike 95 of 95 Moldavite - Mineral Specimens Moldavite is a green natural glass that may be formed as the result of a meteorite impact. H. Raab, Creative Commons License Moldavite is a silicate glass or a glass based on silicon dioxide, SiO2. The green color most likely results from the presence of iron compounds. Continue Reading