Nadine, Haunter of Rocks 👻
@nadwgab.bsky.social
16K followers 1K following 1.5K posts
Geologist | Mineralogy Curator @ the Natural History Museum, London | Creator of #365Minerals | Views are my own | She/Her Posts about: #minerals #museums #geology #fossils #science #nature Geology memes: #GeologistProblems 🐘 mas.to/@NadWGab
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nadwgab.bsky.social
Finally making use of the pinned post feature...

Hello! I'm a geologist and mineral curator. Follow for posts about #minerals, #museums, #science and more! 📜🧪⚒️ #AddToBlackSky
A ginger cat labelled "Me", pressing a grey cat's head labelled "Bluesky" into a red feeding bowl labelled "Minerals". Black, translucent crystals of smoky quartz rising out of a white feldspar groundmass sprinkled with tiny orange spessartine crystals, a type of garnet. Specimen from the Natural History Museum, London's collections.
nadwgab.bsky.social
283 of #365Minerals 🧪⚒️

Aluminite:
- A hydrous sulphate mineral
- Only 1-2 on the Mohs hardness scale (softer than fingernails)
- Forms via the reaction of sulphate solutions in clay or lignite
- Named for its aluminium content #minerals
A white nodular mass of aluminite, resembling an extremely lumpy piece of cauliflower. Has a label on it that says 284. From Newhaven, East Sussex, England, UK.

Specimen on display in the Natural History Museum, London.
Reposted by Nadine, Haunter of Rocks 👻
nadwgab.bsky.social
282 of #365Minerals 🧪⚒️

Tinaksite:
- A silicate mineral
- Forms in hydrothermally altered rocks
- Often associated with charoite
- Its name is based on its composition: titanium (Ti), sodium (Na), potassium (K), silicon (Si) #minerals
Diverging group of orange-brown prismatic tinaksite crystals (like a bundle of spaghetti) in white to pale lilac charoite with somne black sprays of aegirine. From Murunskii Massif, Irkutsk oblast, Russia.

Specimen on display in the Natural History Museum, London.
nadwgab.bsky.social
282 of #365Minerals 🧪⚒️

Tinaksite:
- A silicate mineral
- Forms in hydrothermally altered rocks
- Often associated with charoite
- Its name is based on its composition: titanium (Ti), sodium (Na), potassium (K), silicon (Si) #minerals
Diverging group of orange-brown prismatic tinaksite crystals (like a bundle of spaghetti) in white to pale lilac charoite with somne black sprays of aegirine. From Murunskii Massif, Irkutsk oblast, Russia.

Specimen on display in the Natural History Museum, London.
Reposted by Nadine, Haunter of Rocks 👻
nadwgab.bsky.social
281 of #365Minerals 🧪⚒️

Pollucite:
- A zeolite mineral
- An ore of caesium
- Forms in lithium rich granite pegmatites
- It's named after Pollux, a Greek mythological figure who was the brother of Castor (who gives his name to castorite/petalite, a commonly associated mineral) #minerals
A white, slightly translucent chunk of pollucite with a rough powdery looking texture. From Bernic Lake, Manitoba, Canada.

Specimen on display in the Natural History Museum, London. A rough, flattened spherical crystal of pollucite, beige and translucent. From San Piero in Campo, Elba, Italy.

Specimen on display in the Natural History Museum, London.
Reposted by Nadine, Haunter of Rocks 👻
callanbentley.bsky.social
A log, petrified with malachite + azurite. University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP), 2012. ⚒️
A big log sitting on concrete with a rock wall behind it and a scale pencil on top of it. The log is blue and green!
nadwgab.bsky.social
281 of #365Minerals 🧪⚒️

Pollucite:
- A zeolite mineral
- An ore of caesium
- Forms in lithium rich granite pegmatites
- It's named after Pollux, a Greek mythological figure who was the brother of Castor (who gives his name to castorite/petalite, a commonly associated mineral) #minerals
A white, slightly translucent chunk of pollucite with a rough powdery looking texture. From Bernic Lake, Manitoba, Canada.

Specimen on display in the Natural History Museum, London. A rough, flattened spherical crystal of pollucite, beige and translucent. From San Piero in Campo, Elba, Italy.

Specimen on display in the Natural History Museum, London.
Reposted by Nadine, Haunter of Rocks 👻
rude1.blacksky.team
I hear and see your concerns. Over the weekend, a couple users hosted on Blacksky's PDS were banned from the Bluesky app and thus the Bluesky API servers. This was a weakness of our system I've been aware of and hoped we had more time to address before any kind of public incident. 1/11
Reposted by Nadine, Haunter of Rocks 👻
nadwgab.bsky.social
280 of #365Minerals 🧪⚒️

Kyanite:
- Aluminosilicate mineral
- Polymorph of sillimanite & andalusite
- An index mineral (used to estimate metamorphic temperature, depth & pressure)
- Used in ceramic production
- The winner of #MinCup25!
- Its name comes from the Greek word "kyanos" (blue) #minerals
Thin blue blades of kyanite sticking out of a beige quartz groundmass. From Itabira, Brazil.

Specimen on display in the Natural History Museum, London. A lump consisting of blue and white kyanite prisms. Frm Botriphnie, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, UK.

Specimen on display in the Natural History Museum, London. A cluster of white, opaque kyanite prisms. From Val di Vizze, Italy.

Specimen on display in the Natural History Museum, London. An aggregate of kyanite blades, ranging from dark inky blue in the centre to paler blue towards the edges. From Sultan Hamud, Kenya.

Specimen on display in the Natural History Museum, London.
Reposted by Nadine, Haunter of Rocks 👻
chaceingmaoz.bsky.social
Next drawing is up - Mega Sableye in a Crystal cave
nadwgab.bsky.social
280 of #365Minerals 🧪⚒️

Kyanite:
- Aluminosilicate mineral
- Polymorph of sillimanite & andalusite
- An index mineral (used to estimate metamorphic temperature, depth & pressure)
- Used in ceramic production
- The winner of #MinCup25!
- Its name comes from the Greek word "kyanos" (blue) #minerals
Thin blue blades of kyanite sticking out of a beige quartz groundmass. From Itabira, Brazil.

Specimen on display in the Natural History Museum, London. A lump consisting of blue and white kyanite prisms. Frm Botriphnie, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, UK.

Specimen on display in the Natural History Museum, London. A cluster of white, opaque kyanite prisms. From Val di Vizze, Italy.

Specimen on display in the Natural History Museum, London. An aggregate of kyanite blades, ranging from dark inky blue in the centre to paler blue towards the edges. From Sultan Hamud, Kenya.

Specimen on display in the Natural History Museum, London.
Reposted by Nadine, Haunter of Rocks 👻
nadwgab.bsky.social
279 of #365Minerals 🧪⚒️

Zoisite:
- Epidote group mineral
- Comes in a variety of colours
- Forms in some regionally metamorphosed rocks
- A blue-purple gem quality variety is called tanzanite
- Named after Sigmund Zois Freiherr von Edelstein (1747-1819), a natural scientist #minerals #MineralMonday
A group of deep-blue and blue-black striated zoisite prisms on a dark grey graphite schist. From Merelani Mine, Tazania.

Specimen from the Natural History Museum, London's collection. A pink massive variety of zoisite called thulite, with some pale grey quartz - this information is repeated on the specimen label. From Leksvik, Norway.

Specimen from the Natural History Museum, London's collection. Dark green zoisite prisms on a matrix with some calcite. From Zermatt, Swizterland.

Specimen from the Natural History Museum, London's collection.
nadwgab.bsky.social
279 of #365Minerals 🧪⚒️

Zoisite:
- Epidote group mineral
- Comes in a variety of colours
- Forms in some regionally metamorphosed rocks
- A blue-purple gem quality variety is called tanzanite
- Named after Sigmund Zois Freiherr von Edelstein (1747-1819), a natural scientist #minerals #MineralMonday
A group of deep-blue and blue-black striated zoisite prisms on a dark grey graphite schist. From Merelani Mine, Tazania.

Specimen from the Natural History Museum, London's collection. A pink massive variety of zoisite called thulite, with some pale grey quartz - this information is repeated on the specimen label. From Leksvik, Norway.

Specimen from the Natural History Museum, London's collection. Dark green zoisite prisms on a matrix with some calcite. From Zermatt, Swizterland.

Specimen from the Natural History Museum, London's collection.
Reposted by Nadine, Haunter of Rocks 👻
rockwatch.bsky.social
Happy International Geodiversity Day! Celebrate the incredible rocks, fossils, and landscapes that tell Earth’s story with Rockwatch. Interview and more with Dr Anjana Khatwa — the ultimate rock whisperer! Join the celebration: rockwatch.org.uk
#InternationalGeodiversityDay #Rockwatch #AnjanaKhatwa
In celebration of International Geodiversity Day 2025 Rockwatch chats with Dr Anjana Khatwa about Rocks and Geodiversity The Whispers of Rock by Dr Anjana Khatwa - book cover
Reposted by Nadine, Haunter of Rocks 👻
nadwgab.bsky.social
278 of #365Minerals 🧪⚒️

Botallackite:
- A copper chloride mineral
- Forms when copper deposits are weathered or exposed to salt water
- Can also be found around hydrothermal vents
- First described in 1865
- Named after Botallack Mine in Cornwall, its type locality #minerals
A finely crystalline crust of botallackite on killas rock. From Botallack Mine, Cornwall, England, UK.

Specimen from the Natural History Museum, London's collection.
nadwgab.bsky.social
Haha, my mineral agenda is spreading!
nadwgab.bsky.social
278 of #365Minerals 🧪⚒️

Botallackite:
- A copper chloride mineral
- Forms when copper deposits are weathered or exposed to salt water
- Can also be found around hydrothermal vents
- First described in 1865
- Named after Botallack Mine in Cornwall, its type locality #minerals
A finely crystalline crust of botallackite on killas rock. From Botallack Mine, Cornwall, England, UK.

Specimen from the Natural History Museum, London's collection.
Reposted by Nadine, Haunter of Rocks 👻
nadwgab.bsky.social
We're just over 75% of the way through #365Minerals! My favourite comments are definitely the ones about how some of these #minerals look like food 😋
nadwgab.bsky.social
277 of #365Minerals 🧪⚒️

Brookite:
- A titanium dioxide mineral
- A polymorph of anatase and rutile (same formula, different structure)
- Forms in metamorphic rocks
- Named after Henry James Brooke (1771-1857), a crystallographer #minerals
Brown, translucent tabular brookite crystals on a white altered feldspar groundmass shaped like an L. From Kharan District, Balochistan, Pakistan.

Specimen on display in the Natural History Museum, London.
Reposted by Nadine, Haunter of Rocks 👻
nadwgab.bsky.social
277 of #365Minerals 🧪⚒️

Brookite:
- A titanium dioxide mineral
- A polymorph of anatase and rutile (same formula, different structure)
- Forms in metamorphic rocks
- Named after Henry James Brooke (1771-1857), a crystallographer #minerals
Brown, translucent tabular brookite crystals on a white altered feldspar groundmass shaped like an L. From Kharan District, Balochistan, Pakistan.

Specimen on display in the Natural History Museum, London.
nadwgab.bsky.social
No, unfortunately not. But these are all photos of specimens in the Natural History Museum in London, so I'd definitely recommend a visit if you're ever in the area!
nadwgab.bsky.social
We're just over 75% of the way through #365Minerals! My favourite comments are definitely the ones about how some of these #minerals look like food 😋
nadwgab.bsky.social
277 of #365Minerals 🧪⚒️

Brookite:
- A titanium dioxide mineral
- A polymorph of anatase and rutile (same formula, different structure)
- Forms in metamorphic rocks
- Named after Henry James Brooke (1771-1857), a crystallographer #minerals
Brown, translucent tabular brookite crystals on a white altered feldspar groundmass shaped like an L. From Kharan District, Balochistan, Pakistan.

Specimen on display in the Natural History Museum, London.
Reposted by Nadine, Haunter of Rocks 👻
brightbutterfliii.bsky.social
I’m mad that I never learned how to double dutch this good as a kid 😭
nadwgab.bsky.social
277 of #365Minerals 🧪⚒️

Brookite:
- A titanium dioxide mineral
- A polymorph of anatase and rutile (same formula, different structure)
- Forms in metamorphic rocks
- Named after Henry James Brooke (1771-1857), a crystallographer #minerals
Brown, translucent tabular brookite crystals on a white altered feldspar groundmass shaped like an L. From Kharan District, Balochistan, Pakistan.

Specimen on display in the Natural History Museum, London.