How do you know whether your UV flashlight is really producing the wavelength it claims? You could use a spectrometer, of course, but there is a much simpler option that is especially appealing to mineral collectors: use a fluorescent mineral as a rough UV wavelength...
A good UV flashlight is only as reliable as the battery powering it. For 365nm lights using rechargeable 18650 or RCR123 cells, the battery affects runtime, output, reliability, and safety. The biggest rule is simple: don't buy lithium batteries based on the biggest...
Can a 405nm blue-violet laser pointer be useful for fluorescent minerals? A long discussion among fluorescent mineral collectors came to a fairly clear conclusion: yes—but it is a specialized tool and not a replacement for proper UV lighting. A 405nm laser can excite...
Cataract surgery can produce noticeable changes in the way fluorescent minerals—and colors in general—appear. These changes result primarily from removing the eye's natural crystalline lens, which typically becomes progressively yellow with age, and replacing it with...
GREAT DISCOVERY! (For me anyway). In my mobile fluorescence museum I have 1504 square inches of Hoya U325C filter glass. It's been there for 3 or 4 years and all of it, to a greater or lesser extent, has developed an ugly white encrustation. Why? I don't know. But...
UV lighting intended for fluorescent mineral displays should normally produce little or no ozone, so it is important to use lamps specifically designed as low-ozone or ozone-free types. A distinctive sharp smell around a UV lamp may be ozone, and if a mineral display...
This question always comes up when we're traveling to some far off, glorious glow rock haven. Luckily, the FAA has published rules that are easy to understand - covers lithium batteries, lead acid, and all other batteries. Generally speaking, the answer is yes, when...
Jim Pisani, Editor for the American Opal Society, shared this presentation about collecting and displaying fluorescent minerals, with an emphasis to Opal. Slide 2 — Outline What is fluorescence? What is ultraviolet light? Where is fluorescence used? What are...
Table of Contents From the Editor—A Study in Pink by Howie Green 1–3 Leucophanite from the Langesundsfjord District, Norway by Howie Green and Martijn Hendrikx 4–13 Meliphanite by Howie Green 14–20 Leucophanite from Mont Saint-Hilaire, Quebec, Canada by Howie Green...
Normally I do not send around a report, but now that I have some responsibility with the FMS, I consider it a duty (and a nice one). I have been going to the Tucson shows for 30+ years and have seen just about everything, but every year is a bit different, and there...