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Keywords
X-Y: 6.3cm photo aragonite physical science minerals |
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| Courtesy of Ed Ong, IN-VSEE Project (Arizona State University) | |||||
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| Calcium carbonate appears in many crystalline forms, chiefly aragonite and calcite. This photo shows a crystal of the mineral aragonite (calcium carbonate, CaCO3), exhibiting cyclic twinning. It is incorporated in geological structures as well as biological structure. For example, a large portion of an abalone shell is composed of this mineral. Very small crystals of aragonite, stacked in layers, are responsible for the shell's irridescence. More information on this substance can be
found in the Biominerals
and Iridescence
modules on this site. |
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