Researcher discovers new mineral by chance during corona lockdown
Published: Tuesday, Jun 4th 2024, 09:11
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A mineral found over 20 years ago in the Glarus Alps has turned out to be a previously unknown species. The unique mineral, which has been christened "Heimit", owes its discovery to the coronavirus pandemic.
The scientist, who found the mineral in the Great Chalt Valley in 1999, took it out of the cellar during the lockdown and examined it under a microscope. As the Swiss Academy of Sciences (SCNAT) announced on Tuesday, the rock specialist was astonished when he discovered that it was a mineral he had never seen before.
More detailed analyses carried out by the finder Philippe Roth from the Swiss Seismological Service at ETH Zurich together with Nicolas Meisser from the cantonal natural science museum Naturéum in Lausanne showed that it was indeed a new type of mineral. Roth and Meissner published a scientific article about the new discovery in the "European Journal of Mineralogy".
Chameleon rock
The mineral from the Glarus Alps changes color from green to blue when illuminated by an electron beam from a scanning electron microscope. According to SCNAT, such a chameleon property has not yet been observed in any other mineral. The researchers now want to investigate this phenomenon in more detail.
The Academy went on to say that homeites from four other Swiss sites have since been discovered during the processing of private and public collections. The mineral has also been found in ancient mines in Laurion, south of Athens.
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