(a) Crystal form and shape (external appearance)

MINERALS are characterized by their crystal structures. Crystal structures consist of definite arrangements of the atoms of the elements (chemical) that make up the minerals. In contrast to chemical molecules, which have defined sizes, crystal structures have no size limits although a crystal structure does have a basic building unit called a unit cell. In a crystal, there can be any number of unit cells repeating in any direction.

(b) Colour The colour of the mineral = seen by eye. Colour results from a minerals chemical composition, impurities that may present in the sample, flaws or damage in the internal structure, the light in the room or strong reflective surfaces. Unfortunately, even though color is the easiest physical property to determine, it is not the most useful in helping to characterize a particular mineral. The problem is some minerals display a rainbow of colors (shown by the mineral fluorite (CaF2) ). Therefore, colour is a general rather than specific indicator. Quartz, for example, ranges through the spectrum from clear, colourless crystals to purple, red, white, grey and jet black.

(c) Streak

Streak - colour of finely powdered mineral particles produced by scraping the specimen along a roughened surface such as porcelain plate. The mark left behind can be a characteristic feature of the mineral. The streak is not necessarily the same as the colour of the mineral, hematite, for example produces a reddish brown streak, even though the sample may have a metallic grey appearance. The limitation of a streak plate is that it can only be used on minerals with a hardness less than seven. The combination of luster, color, and streak may be enough to permit identification of the mineral.

(e) Luster Luster - property that results from the manner in which light is reflected from a mineral (the shine of a mineral). Luster is described in terms of the degree of brightness.

The terms to describe luster are : metallic, earthy, waxy, greasy, vitreous (glassy), adamantine (or brilliant, as in a faceted diamond). Other shiny, but somewhat translucent or transparent luster (glassy, adamantine), along with dull, earthy, waxy, and resinous luster, are grouped as non-metallic. Metallic : like polished metal e.g. galena less brilliant e.g. chalk like broken glass e.g. quartz

Submetallic : Dull Vitreous : :