Cochise College          Photos of Minerals

                          Geology Home Page                

                          Roger Weller, geology instructor

                          wellerr@cochise.edu
                                  copyright 2007-R.Weller

 

Mineral Information on:
witherite

Chemical Group:   carbonate

Chemical Formula:   
BaCO3

Color:  colorless, white, gray                  Streak:  White
 

Luster:  vitreous    Transparency:  translucent

 

Hardness:   3.5           Specific Gravity:   4.3               Fracture:

Cleavage:  poor cleavages  {010} and {110}

 

Crystal Forms:  Orthorhombic system
     Crystals are always twinned, forming Pseudo-hexagonal dipyramids.
     Occurs in columnar, granular, fibrous, botryoidal forms.

Mineral Associations:   rare mineral; found with galena

Identifying Characteristics:  white, high density, effervesces in acid

Uses:

Occurrences:  England and Canada; in the USA in Kentucky and California

Toxicity:      when-swallowed-                            when inhaled-

Additional Information: