Calcite (Inventory)/Calcite Coating

From LagWiki

(Difference between revisions)
Jump to: navigation, search

Revision as of 12:51, 19 April 2011

Calcite coating on bedrock. The arrow identifies a sponge.

A calcite coating is a thin layer of calcite usually over bedrock or breakdown. It is much thinner than a calcite crust.

It is sometimes difficult to differentiate between a calcite coating, an aragonite coating, a gypsum coating, and even moonmilk.

Calcite tends to have square-ish crystals. Gypsum sometimes makes starbursts. Aragonite and moonmilk are both bright white. Aragonite coatings are not an inventory item on the CCNP Cave Inventory Form and should be inventoried as a calcite coating, so there is no need to distinguish between these two.

Sometimes it is difficult to positively differentiate between different coatings in the field without destructive testing.

See also


Calcite (Inventory)/Calcite Coating is a part of the cave inventory project.
Personal