Search Mineralpedia – A Mineral Photo Database and Identification Guide

Named for the Greek word diasporas, meaning “to scatter,” in reference to the minerals nature to crackle, decrepitate, when exposed to a blowpipe flame. Somewhat uncommon, but widespread, Diaspore has quite a few localities and prominent localities include in Russia, Slovakia, Poland, Switzerland, Turkey, Macedonia, Greece, South Africa, and the United States. Diaspore occurs as, usually, a final product of diagenesis of bauxite deposits, but can also occur from the hydrothermal alteration of aluminum-rich minerals and as a hydrothermal mineral itself in alkalic pegmatites.

Ref. Handbook of Mineralogy, Anthony et al (1995) and MSA at http://www.handbookofmineralogy.org/pdfs/diaspore.pdf

Now considered a synonym of Dickinsonite-(KMnNa), this mineral was named after Reverend John William Dickinson of Connecticut, USA who was an early collector of Branchville minerals where the mineral gets its type locality from the Fillow quarry in Branchville, Connecticut. Dickinsonite is a rare mineral that can be found in additional USA localities including here in the Black Hills of South Dakota at the Nickel Plate mine, as well as in Rwanda, Namibia, the Czech Republic, and Australia. Associated minerals at the type locality include eosphorite, triploidite, lithiophilite, rhodochrosite, eddingite, and fairfieldite.

Ref. Handbook of Mineralogy, Anthony et al (1995) and MSA at http://www.handbookofmineralogy.org/pdfs/dickinsonite.pdf

Named for Scottish metallurgical chemist Allan Brugh Dick, who was the first to describe the species. Dickite is relatively common and widespread with well studied material from localities in Wales, Hungary, France, South Africa, the United States, and Mexico, along with many other localities. It occurs typically of hydrothermal origin in veins that were derived in part from altered aluminosilicate minerals and can additionally be found as an authigenic mineral in sediments and sedimentary rocks. Dickite is associated with quartz and quartz variety chalcedony.

Ref. Handbook of Mineralogy, Anthony et al (1995) and MSA at http://www.handbookofmineralogy.org/pdfs/dickite.pdf

Named in honor of Richard W. Thomssen, an American economic geologist and a collector of microscopic mineral specimens. Dickthomssenite is a rare mineral that occurs only in Utah in the United States at its type locality in the Firefly-Pigmay mine, as well as in the Vanadium Queen and Blue Cap mines. Dickthomssenite occurs in an oxidized uranium-vanadium deposit in association with pascoite, sherwoodite, and selenium.

Ref. Handbook of Mineralogy, Anthony et al (1995) and MSA at http://www.handbookofmineralogy.org/pdfs/dickthomssenite.pdf