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Rockhound Times

Your one-stop shop for rock and geology news, collecting sites, and essential rockhounding equipment.
Welcome to Rockhound Times, where you can browse through dozens of detailed gem and fossil collecting localities, find recent news of interest to the rockhounding and geology communities, and even stock up on the essential books and gear that any well-equipped rockhound should have.

We believe that rockhounding should be a hobby that is open to all, and with that in mind, we've set out to share the rock and gem collecting sites with the world. From tiny roadside stops to major, well-known collecting sites, you can find it at Rockhound Times.

Happy hunting!

Latest posts:

Mineral of the Day: Ice

3/8/2016

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PictureIce on an autumn leaf (Derbyshire, UK)
Have you ever woken up on a cold morning, and admired the intricate, delicate ice crystals that grew on your windowpanes overnight?

You may not have known that you were witnessing the growth of a mineral, right in front of your very eyes. The definition of a mineral is "a naturally occurring inorganic substance with a definite chemical composition and a regular internal structure."

Liquid water is not a mineral, since it has no crystal structure, but when it freezes, it becomes crystalline. However, the definition includes "naturally-occurring" - so, technically, the ice in your freezer is not a mineral, but what you scrape of your car windshield in the morning is.

PictureFernlike ice fronds on a fence post (Derbyshire, UK)
You'll find ice in a dazzling array of different crystal forms, from these feathery, fern like patterns to the solid sheets on top of a winter puddle, and the myriad shapes of a snowflake. If it were not for its unfortunate tendency to melt, it would surely be widly collected - few other minerals can match the delicate intricacy and variety of an ice crystal.

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