Monthly Archives: September 2009

October – Mica

The name mica is thought to derive from the Latin word, micare – “to glitter”. This no doubt refers to the brilliant sparkle when light is reflected and refracted by this mineral.
More correctly, the Mica Group of minerals are sheet silicates. This means that instead of growing as a large crystal they form in [...]

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September – Whinstone

Whinstone is a quarryman’s term for a variety of hard, dark-coloured, rocks including basalt and chert. Here, in the Tees Valley and Cleveland, the name refers to a hard rock that is very different from the soft sedimentary strata which make up the majority of the area’s underlying geology.

Around 58 million years ago, as [...]

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