Olivine

Olivine is the most common mineral in Earth’s upper mantle. This olivine crystal from the mid-ocean ridge in the Pacific contains tiny bits of volcanic glass, a sample of the liquid rock the crystal grew from. Smithsonian scientists are interested in the composition of this glass, which includes dissolved water. From the exhibition at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History exhibition “More Than Meets The Eye.”

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Tags: geology, National Museum of Natural History