Recently, two local teenagers from Washington, D.C., and Virginia interviewed NMNH Geologist Ben Andrews. Luís and Camile are recent graduates from the museum’s Youth Engagement Through Science (YES!) program, which connects local youth with Smithsonian scientists to gain hands-on experience with natural history research and science communication. After expressing interest... Continue reading

The Department of Mineral Sciences is pleased to welcome post-doc fellows Laura Waters and Mattia Pistone to NMNH. Laura completed her PhD degree in Igneous Geochemistry and Experimental Petrology from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, working on determining the origins of phenocryst-poor glassy rhyolite-obsidians through detailed petrographic and... Continue reading

The Smithsonian recently acquired several new specimens for the National Gem & Mineral Collections during the 2015 Tucson Gem & Mineral Show. One of the pieces, the "Southwest Sunset", was donated by Award winning gem carver Sherris Cottier Shank. The sculpture consists of a 443 ct Ametrine (purple and yellowish... Continue reading

Michael Wise and Tim McCoy were speakers during a five day Smithsonian Associates Teachers Workshop held at the United Tribes Technical College, Bismarck, ND. The participants were undergraduates working towards degrees in elementary education and represented 10 different Native-American tribes from the Bismarck area. Other speakers from the Smithsonian Institution... Continue reading

Two new articles from the staff of Mineral Sciences have recently been published. Glenn MacPherson was part of a collaborative effort (13 co-authors) to characterize the properties of icosahedite, a natural alloy that displays three-dimensional icosahedral symmetry. What makes this discovery so special is that it is the first and... Continue reading

Department of Mineral Sciences volcanologist Liz Cottrell was recently the guest scientist on the Smithsonian Science How? webcast which was broadcasted live from Q?rius in the National Museum of Natural History. During two half-hour sessions, Liz explained to veiwers all about volcanoes and how they work, shared her experiences in... Continue reading

The second annual NEMC was held this past weekend at the Grand Summit Resort Hotel at Sun River, Newry, Maine and was well attended by nearly 100 amateur mineral enthusiasts, miners, mineral dealers and scientists. Michael Wise from the Department of Mineral Sciences (National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution)... Continue reading

In mid-February of 2014, the mineralogists from the Department of Mineral Sciences went to Tucson, Arizona for the 60th Annual Tucson Gem & Mineral Show. Held every February, the Tucson Show is one of the largest shows of its kind in the world and is regularly attended by representatives of... Continue reading

In mid-February of 2014, the mineralogists from the Department of Mineral Sciences went to Tucson, Arizona for the 60th Annual Tucson Gem & Mineral Show. Held every February, the Tucson Show is one of the largest shows of its kind in the world and is regularly attended by representatives of... Continue reading

This blog brings you reports, research news, images and more from the Department of Mineral Sciences at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History. Recent NMNH Mineral Sciences Publications Within the past few weeks, several new papers have been published by members of our staff. As expected, the topics... Continue reading