Tuesday, December 02, 2008

Barite

Barite, also called barytes and heavy spar, is best known for its high specific gravity of 4.43 to 4.46. It comes in many colors including white, gray, colorless, yellow, brown, red, green, and blue. The luster is vitreous or pearly and the streak is white. It has a hardness of 3 to 3.5 and has perfect cleavage in one direction. The crystal system that barite belongs to is orthorhombic. Barite can be found in British Columbia, Colorado, South Dakota, and California.

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