File:Fire opal (Mexico) 4.jpg
![File:Fire opal (Mexico) 4.jpg](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/Fire_opal_%28Mexico%29_4.jpg/800px-Fire_opal_%28Mexico%29_4.jpg?20231228205138)
Original file (1,352 × 773 pixels, file size: 457 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg)
Captions
Captions
Summary
[edit]DescriptionFire opal (Mexico) 4.jpg |
English: Faceted fire opal from Mexico. (~8 millimeters across at its widest)
A mineral is a naturally-occurring, solid, inorganic, crystalline substance having a fairly definite chemical composition and having fairly definite physical properties. At its simplest, a mineral is a naturally-occurring solid chemical. Currently, there are over 5800 named and described minerals - about 200 of them are common and about 20 of them are very common. Mineral classification is based on anion chemistry. Major categories of minerals are: elements, sulfides, oxides, halides, carbonates, sulfates, phosphates, and silicates. The silicates are the most abundant and chemically complex group of minerals. All silicates have silica as the basis for their chemistry. "Silica" refers to SiO2 chemistry. The fundamental molecular unit of silica is one small silicon atom surrounded by four large oxygen atoms in the shape of a triangular pyramid - this is the silica tetrahedron - SiO4. Each oxygen atom is shared by two silicon atoms, so only half of the four oxygens "belong" to each silicon. The resulting formula for silica is thus SiO2, not SiO4. Opal is hydrous silica (SiO2·nH2O). Technically, opal is not a mineral because it lacks a crystalline structure. Opal is supposed to be called a mineraloid. Opal is made up of extremely tiny spheres (colloids) that can be seen with a scanning electron microscope (SEM). Gem-quality opal, or precious opal, has a wonderful rainbow play of colors (opalescence). This play of color is the result of light being diffracted by planes of voids between large areas of regularly packed, same-sized opal colloids. Different opalescent colors are produced by colloids of differing sizes. If individual colloids are larger than 140 x 10-6 millimeters in size, purple & blue & green colors are produced. Once colloids get as large as about 240 x 10-6 millimeters, red color is seen (Carr et al., 1979). Not all opals have the famous play of colors, however. Common opal has a wax-like luster & is often milky whitish with no visible color play at all. Opal is moderately hard (H = 5 to 6), has a white streak, and has conchoidal fracture. Several groups of organisms make skeletons of opaline silica, for example hexactinellid sponges, diatoms, radiolarians, silicoflagellates, and ebridians. Some organisms incorporate opal into their tissues, for example horsetails/scouring rushes and sawgrass. Sometimes, fossils are preserved in opal or precious opal. Seen here is a cut and faceted gemstone composed of "fire opal", named in reference to the fiery, orangish-reddish color. Locality: unrecorded/undisclosed site in Mexico Photo gallery of opal: www.mindat.org/gallery.php?min=3004 Reference cited: Carr et al. (1979) - Andamooka opal fields: the geology of the precious stones field and the results of the subsidised mining program. Geological Survey of South Australia Department of Mines and Energy Report of Investigations 51. 68 pp. |
Date | |
Source | https://www.flickr.com/photos/47445767@N05/52312958184/ |
Author | James St. John |
Licensing
[edit]![w:en:Creative Commons](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/CC_some_rights_reserved.svg/90px-CC_some_rights_reserved.svg.png)
![attribution](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/11/Cc-by_new_white.svg/24px-Cc-by_new_white.svg.png)
- You are free:
- to share – to copy, distribute and transmit the work
- to remix – to adapt the work
- Under the following conditions:
- attribution – You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
![]() |
This image was originally posted to Flickr by James St. John at https://flickr.com/photos/47445767@N05/52312958184. It was reviewed on 28 December 2023 by FlickreviewR 2 and was confirmed to be licensed under the terms of the cc-by-2.0. |
28 December 2023
File history
Click on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time.
Date/Time | Thumbnail | Dimensions | User | Comment | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
current | 20:51, 28 December 2023 | ![]() | 1,352 × 773 (457 KB) | Ser Amantio di Nicolao (talk | contribs) | Uploaded a work by James St. John from https://www.flickr.com/photos/47445767@N05/52312958184/ with UploadWizard |
You cannot overwrite this file.
File usage on Commons
There are no pages that use this file.
Metadata
This file contains additional information such as Exif metadata which may have been added by the digital camera, scanner, or software program used to create or digitize it. If the file has been modified from its original state, some details such as the timestamp may not fully reflect those of the original file. The timestamp is only as accurate as the clock in the camera, and it may be completely wrong.
Camera manufacturer | Canon |
---|---|
Camera model | Canon PowerShot D10 |
Exposure time | 1/60 sec (0.016666666666667) |
F-number | f/11 |
ISO speed rating | 80 |
Date and time of data generation | 09:38, 26 August 2022 |
Lens focal length | 11.614 mm |
Width | 4,000 px |
Height | 3,000 px |
Bits per component |
|
Pixel composition | RGB |
Orientation | Normal |
Number of components | 3 |
Horizontal resolution | 180 dpi |
Vertical resolution | 180 dpi |
Software used | Adobe Photoshop Elements 18.0 (Macintosh) |
File change date and time | 12:37, 26 August 2022 |
Y and C positioning | Co-sited |
Exif version | 2.21 |
Date and time of digitizing | 09:38, 26 August 2022 |
Meaning of each component |
|
Image compression mode | 3 |
APEX shutter speed | 5.90625 |
APEX aperture | 6.90625 |
APEX exposure bias | −0.33333333333333 |
Maximum land aperture | 4 APEX (f/4) |
Metering mode | Pattern |
Flash | Flash fired, compulsory flash firing, red-eye reduction mode |
Supported Flashpix version | 1 |
Color space | sRGB |
Focal plane X resolution | 16,460.905349794 |
Focal plane Y resolution | 16,483.516483516 |
Focal plane resolution unit | inches |
Sensing method | One-chip color area sensor |
File source | Digital still camera |
Custom image processing | Normal process |
Exposure mode | Manual exposure |
White balance | Auto white balance |
Digital zoom ratio | 1 |
Scene capture type | Portrait |
Lens used | 6.2-18.6 mm |
Date metadata was last modified | 08:37, 26 August 2022 |
Unique ID of original document | 3EAB8845BAFEB28269DB8EA0060909D9 |