Photos from
Mineralogy
Kurt
Friehauf
The Sterling Hill and Franklin
zinc mines are located in Ogdensburg, New Jersey, a two hour drive from
campus. They are both world class mineral sites, hosting by far
the most varieties of fluorescent minerals in the world.
The deposit was very high grade
and so the mine was produced by underground methods, in contrast to the
giant open pits mining lower grade rock that are common today.
When the economics of undeground mining weren't profitable, the company
closed the mine down. Two brothers who worked as miners there
bought the property and turned the tunnels into a mining museum.
The museum employs wonderful tour
guides who are miners with real experience
underground. The museum has special
collection days/nights, too,
during which they allow mineral collectors to take samples.
Our
tour guide was Ron Mishkin - he's hilarious! Coincidentally, he
once worked in the same mine that I worked in during my Ph.D. research (Superior,
Arizona).
A "xenolithoid" of mafic gneiss
within coarse-grained marble. Amazing things happen to limestone
when it's heated and squeezed to metamorphic temperatures and
pressures! In this case, the limestone became fluid, like
toothpaste, so heavy blocks of mafic gneiss sank down into the goo and
were trapped when conditions cooled.
The museum has a pile of rock they
allow collectors to pilfer through. There's a nominal charge for
samples, but the rocks are so rare that the price is a trifle if you
really appreciate nature's wonders.
Viewed from a distance, these look
like typical brown rocks. Geology teaches many lessons,
though. Geology
teaches us to focus our minds to look more
carefully and deeply at otherwise superficially innoccuous
things. Many of the world's wonders don't cry out with clamorous
cries for attention, rather some hum only softly, but are none the less
wonderful.
A
lot of lessons in geology apply
to everyday life. What works for rocks often works for people.
Given
the right light, hidden
wonders may reveal themselves.
When viewed with short wave UV
light, for example, the minerals from Sterling Hill glow
brilliantly.
Geology
lessons - people
lessons - all part of the same big picture.
More pictures to come!
.
The Sterling Hill and Franklin
zinc mines are located in Ogdensburg, New Jersey, a two hour drive from
campus. They are both world class mineral sites, hosting by far
the most varieties of fluorescent minerals in the world. 
The deposit was very high grade
and so the mine was produced by underground methods, in contrast to the
giant open pits mining lower grade rock that are common today.
When the economics of undeground mining weren't profitable, the company
closed the mine down. Two brothers who worked as miners there
bought the property and turned the tunnels into a mining museum.
The museum employs wonderful tour
guides who are miners with real experience
underground. The museum has special
collection days/nights, too,
during which they allow mineral collectors to take samples. 
A "xenolithoid" of mafic gneiss
within coarse-grained marble. Amazing things happen to limestone
when it's heated and squeezed to metamorphic temperatures and
pressures! In this case, the limestone became fluid, like
toothpaste, so heavy blocks of mafic gneiss sank down into the goo and
were trapped when conditions cooled. 
The museum has a pile of rock they
allow collectors to pilfer through. There's a nominal charge for
samples, but the rocks are so rare that the price is a trifle if you
really appreciate nature's wonders.
Viewed from a distance, these look
like typical brown rocks. Geology teaches many lessons,
though. Geology
teaches us to focus our minds to look more
carefully and deeply at otherwise superficially innoccuous
things. Many of the world's wonders don't cry out with clamorous
cries for attention, rather some hum only softly, but are none the less
wonderful.
A
lot of lessons in geology apply
to everyday life. What works for rocks often works for people.