Minerals are geologic time capsules of the environments in which they form. With the right approach, their mysteries can be cracked open to reveal key features of the ancient Earth or other planets.

Water molecules line up tiny particles to attach and form minerals; understanding how this happens impacts energy extraction and storage along with waste disposal. Large crystals growing in water ...

The impact of Earth’s geology on life is easy to see, with organisms adapting to environments as different as deserts, mountains, forests, and oceans. The full impact of life on geology, however, can ...

“Early in my career, as I studied at the China University of Geosciences in Wuhan, I wanted to discover where and how minerals formed. Now, I develop geochemical tools to explore how minerals form in ...

There may be 4000 more minerals in the world than previously thought, according to a new catalogue that identifies them not only by their internal make-up, but by the ways they are formed. Stefan ...

A new origins-based system for classifying minerals reveals the huge geochemical imprint that life has left on Earth. It could help us identify other worlds with life too. The impact of Earth’s ...