Australia has yielded an interesting new finding in the world of minerals (and here you thought the words “interesting” and “minerals” were mutually exclusive). Fools!
Discovered in volcanic rock by mine prospectors Down Under, the crystal formation of “putnisite” has the color scheme of Wild Berry Skittles: purple, teal, pink and green all enveloped in white rock. And while this sparkly color scheme alone is an exciting prospect for Etsy crafters the world over, putnisite is scientifically notable for its dissimilarity from any other known mineral.
Typically dozens of new minerals are discovered each year, but it’s exceedingly rare to find one that goes it alone in chemical composition. As the co-author of a study describing the substance explains:
Most minerals belong to a family or small group of related minerals . . . but putnisite is completely unique and unrelated to anything.
Another researcher commented on the strange combination of chemicals present in putnisite, noting that “[n]ature seems to be far cleverer at dreaming up new chemicals than any researcher in a laboratory.” Watch out, Nickelodeon chemists of the 1990s—you may have unholy creations like Gak and Floam under your belt, but nature is throwing down the gauntlet when it comes to proffering weird substances.
Minerals (which are created by geological processes like magma eruption and tectonic pressure) can be rather useful. Common minerals produce such everyday—and utterly awesome!—items as aluminum, soap and cleaners, electrical wires, and computer parts.
So far scientists haven’t found a practical use for putnisite (keeping our fingers cross for time-travel potential), but if nothing else, it's gonna look great sitting on our coffee tables.
Image: commons.wikimedia.org
