Fluorite
Mineral CaF2
Also called Fluorspar
Take care.
- Sensitive to heat: Keep it away from heat and sudden changes of temperature, including hot lights and ultrasonic cleaners.
About it
Glassy cubes and octahedrons that a knife scratches, with perfect cleavage in four directions. Famous from Weardale in England, Cave-in-Rock in Illinois, and China; fluorescence was named after it.
- Type
- Mineral
- Group
- Halide, fluorite group
- Formula
- CaF2
- Hardness (Mohs)
- 4
- Specific gravity
- 3.18
- Streak
- white
- Lustre
- vitreous (glassy)
- Crystal system
- Isometric (cubic)
- Colours
- purple, green, blue, yellow, pink, colourless, banded
- Transparency
- transparent, translucent
- Cleavage and fracture
- perfect octahedral
- Under UV light
- often blue or violet under longwave UV
Typical values: real specimens vary. For more, see mindat.org.