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DL Whitney @sorosilicate.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

Subducted chert with perfect little #garnets scattered in a sea of #quartz, as seen under cross polarized and plane polarized light; FOV ~ 1.5 mm. Laytonville, California US. Garnet has previously won #MineralCup and maybe 2026 is finally the year for #quartz! #MinCup26

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DL Whitney @sorosilicate.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

One day during field work in Türkiye, I sat in a dry stream bed to eat lunch and found this #andalusite + quartz rock next to my foot! I walked upstream until I found the outcrops, and ended up with an unexpected new research project on this surprising rock! #MinCup26 #MineralCup

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DL Whitney @sorosilicate.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

If you (or the Earth) heats up #kyanite at low pressure (shallow depths), you get #andalusite! Both are Al2SiO5, but with distinct crystal structures. #MinCup26 #MineralCup

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DL Whitney @sorosilicate.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Beautiful #andlausite with a crystallographically-controlled cross of #graphite inclusions (chiastolite). It would be epic to have an andalusite vs graphite match, if only andalusite can prevail over cuprite. #MinCup26 #MineralCup

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DL Whitney @sorosilicate.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

The dark mineral in these plane (L) and crossed polarized (R) light photos of a subducted metasediment from Corsica is mostly #graphite. Some occurs as inclusions in #lawsonite, defining micro-folds. #MinCup26, #MineralCup

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DL Whitney @sorosilicate.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

#Riebeckite occurs in some alkali granites and banded iron formations and it can occur in blueschist. It is more iron-rich (including Fe3+) than the more famous #glaucophane. This photo shows a sodic amphibole zoned from Mg-rich core to iron-rich rim in chert that was subducted. FOV 2 mm. #mincup26

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DL Whitney @sorosilicate.bsky.social · 08/03/2026

International Women’s Day march in Berlin

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DL Whitney @sorosilicate.bsky.social · 01/10/2025

Epic #kyanite crystals reveal their colors when split open. We are tracking variation in extent of kyanite to sillimanite transformation in a metamorphic dome — it varies from 0-100% with structural location in the dome: one of the many geo-useful and fun things you can do with kyanite. #MinCup25

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DL Whitney @sorosilicate.bsky.social · 01/10/2025

These white #kyanite crystals in a biotite-gedrite schist from central Australia somehow missed out on the titanium, iron, and other trace elements that kyanite typically contains to give it the iconic blue and other colors. #MinCup25

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DL Whitney @sorosilicate.bsky.social · 01/10/2025

This rock in western Norway originated as basalt in an ancient ocean, then it was buried (subducted) tens of kilometers and heated over 800 C to create this beautiful #kyanite. The alignment of the kyanite indicates deformation. #MinCup25

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DL Whitney @sorosilicate.bsky.social · 01/10/2025

Chromium-rich #kyanite blood, as seen with cathodoluminescence imaging. #MinCup25

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DL Whitney @sorosilicate.bsky.social · 01/10/2025

I’m very excited that #tugtupite made it to the finals but can it do this? Folded #kyanite in a high-pressure quartzite, western Türkiye. #MinCup25

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DL Whitney @sorosilicate.bsky.social · 29/09/2025

Hematite is red, #kyanite is blue, And also green, white, black, and orange too #MinCup25

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DL Whitney @sorosilicate.bsky.social · 29/09/2025

#kyanite (blue) replacing or being replaced by pink #andalusite. Bonus: there is also #sillimanite, so this a rare locality containing 3 Al2SiO5 minerals (polymorphs). Lesjaverk, Norway. #MinCup25

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DL Whitney @sorosilicate.bsky.social · 23/09/2025

#kyanite in biotite gneiss from the Entia Dome, central Australia. Kyanite forms deep in the crust before it makes its way to the Earth’s surface, a slow and much more challenging journey than taenite’s fall through space. #MinCup25

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DL Whitney @sorosilicate.bsky.social · 13/09/2025

#kyanite volcano (not really a thing but a nice way to display the different colors of kyanite) #MinCup25

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DL Whitney @sorosilicate.bsky.social · 11/09/2025

#Garnet swimming in a sea of #Titanite in a Franciscan Complex metamorphic rock, as seen in plane and cross polarized light. Photo by Sarah Brandt. #MinCup25

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DL Whitney @sorosilicate.bsky.social · 11/09/2025

#Titanite from the Franciscan subduction complex, California, as seen under plane and cross polarized light in a petrographic microscope. Field of view about 2 mm. Photo by Sarah Brandt. #MinCup25