Rocks & Minerals Latest Topics

Wolframite?

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 19:04:18 +0000

Howdy all,

I got this chunk of vein quartz from a collection of specimens my university was giving away. It has a number if mineral inclusions in it to include some sort of mica, iron oxides, and traces of copper minerals.

What really got me however is a large vein of black material running through it. It looks very similar to wolframite, or at least specimens I have seen before; specifically wolframite from the Wichita mine in New Mexico. The quartz itself is very similar to quartz chunks from the mine, as well.

Do y'all think this is wolframite or is it something else?

Mica mineral:

A piece of Wichita vein quartz with veins of wolframite:

Green rock

Fri, 13 Mar 2026 00:54:10 +0000

Glauconite or chlorite staining? Base rock seems to be an indurated mudstone (similar waxy luster as chert but scratches with steel, no reaction to vinegar). Green "coating" appears to be about 3.5mm thick, though it could also be wrapping around a bit and creating that illusion. Pulls a disappearing act when dry.

Pikeville Formation, eastern KY (found loose in a creek bed)

Mineral ID? (Gypsum or calcite?)

Wed, 25 Feb 2026 04:06:35 +0000

Hello all,

These photos were from a while ago in March of 2025. I went to a part of a canyon that’s known for its cretaceous fossils such as plants and invertebrates. I’m not that familiar with minerals, may it be calcite or gypsum? I was thinking the latter.

Possible lost moldavite fragment.

Wed, 25 Mar 2026 22:45:10 +0000

I found a small green glass fragment in a snowbank in Sudbury. It has exact colouration, shape, irregularities, lines and other features of moldavite. However I found this in Sudbury, Ontario. My guess is that it is something someone lost.
Ill answer any questions to the best of my abilities.
PS: sorry if I violated any rules with the posts as it’s technically not a find that counts or if it’s illegal, which i don’t think it is based upon me being granted permission to have the piece by the land owner.
Any help is appreciated!

Rock Identification

Sun, 29 Mar 2026 07:04:56 +0000

Meteorite that crashed in Houston

Thu, 26 Mar 2026 00:28:57 +0000

Greetings. Over the weekend a space rock crashed through a Houston home's roof and into a bedroom. Fortunately, nobody was hurt. You probably are aware from the news. So I talked to the owner who survived the crash and I photographed the meteorite. I've since talked to some experts and gathered more information about the rock itself. Most people agree that it's an LL6 or an L6 chondrite depending on metal content. It's a hammerstone too which makes it even more valuable. I'll attach a photo for you to help confirm what it is. If you need to see more photos or need more info, I wrote an article here:

Ponderosa Forest Meteorite Event - Million Dollar Space Rock Crashes Into Houston Home

White and black dolostone - What do you see?

Sat, 21 Mar 2026 15:54:43 +0000

Hello, I know more or less what this is, so I would like to ask what do you see metaphorically in this rock.

Lets play pareidolia at its best .

Field of view is about 18 cm, its white and black dolostone from the Breitenau magnesite mine with some brown magnesite.

Franz Bernhard

Please help me identify this beauty

Fri, 13 Mar 2026 12:19:30 +0000

Found on the river side . Heavy but fragile when scrubbed. No magnetic. Black streak.

An unusual structure in olivine crystal of a meteorite

Sun, 15 Mar 2026 19:50:36 +0000

Here are some microscopic images of an olivine crystal of a slice of a meteorite Gadamis 010.
What do you think about its inner structure ?

Two last images are taking under the transmitted light.

Thanks!

An old creek find. Goethite/psilomelane/romanechite?

Sat, 07 Mar 2026 00:39:02 +0000

Something from my early days of rock-hunting. Someone here suggested goethite back then but I'd never gotten around to doing any tests to confirm.

Current best guess: Ferromanganese/manganese-encrusted sandstone? Possibly psilomelane or romanechite since there was no reaction to peroxide. (Goethite usually leaves a brown streak, though I've read that it can sometimes appear black.)

The waxy crust (about 3.5mm thick) is dotted with small bumps and dimples (mostly dimples), which combined with its sub-metallic, almost iridescent sheen give it a glittery appearance.

Non-magnetic, and not notably heavy. When viewed from the side, small whitish crystals can be seen within the broken edges of the dark rind, with a slightly lighter grey-brown interior resembling lithic sandstone. Penny left a copper streak, nail file left a silver streak (both rubbed off).

Found loose in an eastern KY creek (Pikeville Formation).

What is this, exactly?

Wed, 04 Mar 2026 21:18:19 +0000

I found this several years ago at a lake shore in north central Washington state. It is smooth, flat on the bottom, some striation and bumps on the side. I assume it was a concretion but a conversation with a coworker makes me wonder if it’s actually a plant fossil. What do you think?

Structure of unknown origin in dolostone

Wed, 11 Mar 2026 12:14:19 +0000

Hello, I would like to ask for interpretations of this structure:

The polished dolostone specimen is 15 cm wide, orientation unknown (found loose) and from the Devonian Flösserkogel-Formation of the Paleozoic of Graz. Its all dolomite, except very minor calcite veining. The area has undergone strong diagenesis of about meta-anthracite to graphite grade.

The main part and the lowest left part is of fine sugary, but very compact texture.

In the banded part, the dolomite grains are significantly coarser and form a palisade texture, with individual elongated crystalites crossing a few bands +/- perpendicular to the banding at every spot of the structure. The second pic shows this orientation of the elongated dolomite crystalites schematically.

What could it be? Many thanks for all your suggestions.

Franz Bernhard

What kind of rock is this?

Sat, 14 Mar 2026 09:23:20 +0000

What type of rock is this?

Tue, 10 Mar 2026 20:50:28 +0000

I found this rock that doesnt react to a magnet, it has a density of about 4.2g/cm3 and a smooth glassy texture on the outside that covers most of the rock. Found in central Europe. What caused the smooth glassy layer? Any chance its a meteorite, i've never seen something like it?

Mineral with a fossil on it ?ID?

Tue, 03 Mar 2026 23:09:48 +0000

It look like chalcopyrite i have one with calcite? very schiny on UV light the other with a little gasteropod on it ,somebody have seen this kind of rock before? what could it be?

Man-made or just a unique rock?

Wed, 25 Feb 2026 15:27:35 +0000

Found in Peace River in a deep hole with some meg frags and other teeth.

Is this a geode?

Sat, 28 Feb 2026 11:42:56 +0000

Is this a geode?

Identity

Sat, 28 Feb 2026 20:10:25 +0000

Can anyone tell me what this is please?

help for ID

Thu, 26 Feb 2026 17:57:12 +0000

What could it be ?thanks

Looking to ID some fossils and rocks

Tue, 24 Feb 2026 01:51:55 +0000

Found some cool rocks/fossils, wanted to know what they were and if it would be worth it to break any of them open.

All found in the central Ohio River Valley region in either Kentucky or Ohio.

Odd green and quartz(?) stone.

Sun, 22 Feb 2026 18:09:56 +0000

I unfortunately lack details, however I possess a much larger version of this stone that I found too.

Seems to have quarts in it, and pyrite sprinkled about, green in a way i havent seen in all but one stone

Interesting rock

Wed, 18 Feb 2026 01:35:51 +0000

Found this in a field. It’s very heavy for its size. Never seen anything like it before. The little circles are super interesting. Any thoughts on what it might be? Found in North East Nebraska. Thanks

What stone - rock formation is this ?

Wed, 04 Feb 2026 00:28:19 +0000

Hello everyone, I was curious if anyone had any insight into this rock. I picked this up as a kid from a heavily carved out riverbed, "little Grand Canyon"; this rock has since been referred to as petrified dinosaur poop (I was a kid). I found it in the Colorado Desert, recalling the Palo Verde Valley region in the California-Arizona border. Just a souvenir of spending the day back then with Grandparents and family. 1.6lbs 4x3x3

Help Identifying these rocks/potential fossils

Wed, 04 Feb 2026 02:18:53 +0000

These three rocks were all joined, although the order of the smaller two may be out. There is another visible rock in the dirt that was connected also but I left it there underneath the dirt. I dug these out months ago but left them on top of the dirt outside, so natural cleaning has taken place. This looks like fossilised bone to me but would love your opinion. Found in Victoria Australia

10.

11.

Waffle rock

Mon, 02 Feb 2026 05:29:49 +0000

Just found by a creek in montana. Does anyone know what it is?