any geology types in the house?

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14 Sep 2009, 10:29 pm

I bought a rock at a local show about a week ago. It was plugged as a recently discovered rock in the western US and it's supposed to glow green under a black light.

I tried a black light and I tried my UV flashlight. There's no green whatsoever.

To describe the rock - it's perfectly white, looks almost like a chunk of ivory soap that's been broken off.

Do rocks that glow under UV need a specific wavelength to glow or have I been had?

iamnotaparakeet
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14 Sep 2009, 10:56 pm

I'd think the UV lamp or flashlight should have worked, but the process is called fluorescence:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fluorescence

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14 Sep 2009, 10:59 pm

Not sure about UV and wavelength, but I do know that if put against a flame, the flame will turn certain colors depending on what chemical is in the mineral.

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digger1
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14 Sep 2009, 11:09 pm

iamnotaparakeet wrote:

but the process is called fluorescence:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fluorescence

I'm gonna let that one go and say "ooh pretty!'

digger1
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15 Sep 2009, 12:28 pm

here's the rock in question:

pakled
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15 Sep 2009, 12:59 pm

reminds me of quartz (NC is lousy with it), but I'm no geologist...

ZEGH8578
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15 Sep 2009, 1:28 pm

you have been off gerippst :]

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digger1
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15 Sep 2009, 1:44 pm

no idea what that means.

ZEGH8578
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15 Sep 2009, 2:01 pm

digger1 wrote:

no idea what that means.

i was being hilarious. im saying it looks like youve been ripped off.

why would they sell a (quartz looking) rock to ordinary people, if it was "newly discovered" + it doesnt glow under a UV light. i dont think you can get a "malfunctioning rock" so... you probably paid for just an ordinary piece of quartz.

it actually reminds me of flint.

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Tim_Tex
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15 Sep 2009, 2:31 pm

digger1 wrote:

here's the rock in question:

It looks like chalcedony.

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15 Sep 2009, 5:25 pm

digger1 wrote:

here's the rock in question:

Looks like it could possibly also be an agate or soapstone of some sort. Generally neither will fluoresce. --Next time you buy a rock that the seller claims to be fluorescent, make sure he has a blacklight on hand to ensure that's the case.

Also, FWIW, I think that 'recently discovered' in this case means 'freshly dug up' rather than 'this type of rock is previously unknown to geologists'. -- Furthermore for the record, my dad has an MA in Geology.

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digger1
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15 Sep 2009, 7:24 pm

Fogman, you're gust a trove of information, aren't ya? got facebook? Love to have you as a friend!

Tim, I tried the flame thing with my butane micro-torch. The flame remained blue.

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15 Sep 2009, 10:18 pm

Blue often indicates copper.

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Fogman
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16 Sep 2009, 10:33 am

digger1 wrote:

Fogman, you're gust a trove of information, aren't ya? got facebook? Love to have you as a friend!

Tim, I tried the flame thing with my butane micro-torch. The flame remained blue.

Thanks but I gave up my facebook acct. about a month ago, it was pretty much useless for me.

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digger1
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16 Sep 2009, 10:35 am

Tim_Tex wrote:

Blue often indicates copper.

The flame was already blue and didn't change hue.

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