Tektite Gemstone & Information | Gemopedia by JTV | Gemopedia™

Tektites are very unique in that they form when a meteorite melts the earth that it comes in contact with. Often, this is in the form of molten rock and sand turned molten from the heat of impact, and may be tossed into the air, raining down as a natural glass. Tektites are named from their locations, i.e. moldavite is from the Moldau river area of the Czech Republic. Common colors of this natural glass are yellow, green, gray to black, and colorless.
Colors
Green, Olive Green, Light Yellow To Yellowish Green, Black, Dark Brown, Colorless
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Tektite classification
CommonNameTektiteSpeciesTektiteVarietyColorsGreen, Olive Green, Light Yellow To Yellowish Green, Black, Dark Brown, ColorlessAlternateNamesGemstoneGroupsKeySeparationsrefractive index, SR nature, magnification, and specific gravityClassificationCommentsTektite is a general term used for natural glasses formed by meteoric impacts. Australite: dark or black disc, bowl or button-shaped Tektites from Southern Australia and Tasmania. Bikolite: Tektites from the Bikol area of the Philippines. They occur as spheres with a breadcrust crack appearance and grooved curved polygonal flakes. Billitonite are from the Billiton Island between Sumatra and Borneo. The acidic waters of the area make Billitonite more etched than other varieties of tektites. Darwin glass: natural glass from just south of Queenstown, Tasmania it is thought it comes from the Darwin crater impact site. Moldavite green variety of tektites from the Czech Republic. Libyan desert glass: light yellow to greenish yellow from the White Desert in Egypt. Indochinite: dark mostly black and found in Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand and southern China -
Tektite chemistry & crystallography
ChemicalNamesilicaChemicalFormulaSiO2 (75% silica+Al, Ca, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, Ti)SynthesisCrystalSystemNAChemistryClassificationMineraloidNatureNaturalCrystallinityAmorphousChemistryComments -
Tektite optical properties
TransparencyTranslucent - OpaqueDispersionOpticalCommentsRefractiveIndex1.49-1.52BirefringenceOpticCharacterNAOpticSignNAPolariscopeReactionSingly Refractive (SR) With ADRFluorescenceSWUV: Inert
LWUV: InertCCFReactionPleochroismNone -
Tektite characteristic physical properties
Hardness5.5-6.5CharacteristicCommentsStreakSpecificGravity2.34-2.51ToughnessPoorInclusionsTektites often have round and elongated gas bubbles, flow lines and a roiled, cloudy or turbid appearance.LusterVitreousStabilityFractureConchoidalCleavageNone