I read something about fluorescent minerals a month or so ago and got to wondering if any of my fossils displayed fluorescence. I started out with this <$7 uv flashlight from Lowes.
Out of all of my fossils, I found about two dozen that exhibited fluorescence. So I’m gathering that it is pretty rare to find a fossil that also exhibits fluorescence. And everything I was reading indicated that 90% of minerals do not fluoresce under longwave ultraviolet light which is what this flashlight (And UV blacklights.) emit.
My curiosity was killing me! So I ordered the $49.99 plus shipping, kit below:
“This complete beginner’s fluorescent mineral kit includes a filtered shortwave/longwave UV light, 5 different color fluorescent minerals, and bonus educational CD. The CD includes a 52 page ebook covering fluorescent minerals. A over 30 mineral slideshow of fluorescent minerals from around the world, a teachers lesson plan, and much more! Did you know Shortwave UV is preferred by rockhounders because 90% of all fluorescent minerals respond only to filtered shortwave UV, filtering shortwave increases the effectiveness by reducing the amount of visible light emitted by the bulb. This wonderful kit is just the thing to get you started in the fantastic world of fluorescent minerals. Other uses for this handy little lamp include stamp collecting, science experiments, counterfeit detection, and more.”
Lamp Size: 6-1/2″ x 2-1/4″ x 3/4″ Wattage: 4W Bulb: Filtered Enhanced 4 watt Shortwave 254 nm UV – 375nm Longwave UV Batteries Required: 4 AA Lamp Features: filtered shortwave, LED flashlight, pop out stand, wrist strap
From this company and it arrive 3 days later: http://ultraviolet-tools.com/index.php
You’ll have to forgive the photography. I have a Nikon Cool Pix and the only way I could get it to photograph in darkness was on the dusk/dawn setting, but I thought you would like to see what I am finding.
Here are the minerals from the kit under shortwave ultraviolet light.
They just showed purple under longwave.
Plastic baggy of minerals under longwave uv.
Plastic baggie of minerals under shortwave uv.
Here are the fossils that I am photographing.
Receptaculitid under longwave uv.
Same receptaculitid under shortwave uv.
Trilobites under longwave uv – doesn’t show the eerie yellow glow.
Trilobites under shortwave uv.
Brachiopod internal mold under longwave uv.
Same brach longwave – I got nothing under shortwave uv.
Maclurites under longwave uv; nothing under shortwave uv.
Geodized cephalopod under longwave uv.
Geodized ceph under shortwave uv. In reality it was more dramatic as to the eye you can see the lines just pop under shortwave uv.
A quartzite mineral that shows under longwave but not shortwave uv.
So, nearly all of my fossils are only showing fluorescence under longwave ultraviolet light.
And here is a link to the discussion on fluorescent fossils on thefossilforum.com
http://www.thefossilforum.com/index.php?/topic/41049-fluorescent-fossils-under-uv-light/
And then I found the Miner Shop…
MinerShop.com provides extensive information and images about the Fluorescent Minerals of Greenland and tons of good information about the Fluorescent Mineral Hobby. Please take a few moments to browse, and don’t hesitate to send questions, comments to sales@minershop.com. Visit the RockShop for specimens currently for sale.
http://www.minershop.com/index.shtml
And a link on how to set up a fluorescent display…
How to setup a fluorescent display: http://users.ece.gatech.edu/~hamblen/uvminerals/Fluorescent_Mineral_Displays.htm
And then I found The Fluorescent Mineral Society…
http://uvminerals.org/fms/minerals
How to create a Fluorescent Mineral Display:
http://uvminerals.org/fms/display-techniques
How to Photograph Fluorescent Minerals:
http://uvminerals.org/fms/photographing-fluorescent-minerals
Pretty Cool!
