Information About Fluorescent Rocks
Rocks and minerals exist in a number of forms. One of the more interesting and visually stunning varieties are fluorescent rocks. These rocks glow various colors under a black light. They are collected by hobbyists and even have their own scientific society dedicated to them.
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Identification
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Fluorescent rocks by definition give off a colorful light when their electrons are excited upon meeting longwave or shortwave ultraviolet radiation.
Activators
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Most fluorescent rocks glow under UV light because of impurities called activators. These impurities might not be in every rock of a certain type, and one type of rock can have different activators in different samples, leading to different colors of fluorescent light.
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Pure Fluorescent Rocks
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Certain "self-activated" rocks are fluorescent in their pure state without the need for activators. These include sheelite and powellite, among a few ores of uranium.
Viewing Fluorescence
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The easiest way to view fluorescence in a rock is to turn off all the lights and shine a black light on them. Black lights are shortwave UV lights and will reveal fluorescence nicely.
Colors
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Fluorescent rocks can come in many fluorescent colors, from blue to orange and everything in between. Many rocks such as calcite can give off different colors from specimen to specimen depending on the activator found in it.
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