Halite is a mineral. It has a chemical composition of NaCl (sodium chloride) and is commonly used for table salt, hence the nickname ‘rock salt’.

Halite forms when sea or salt water evaporates. When the water evaporates, 3 minerals are formed. First calcite forms out of the solution then gypsum. After both of those minerals are formed, halite is. They are formed in an order because halite is made of some of the same things as both calcite and gypsum, gypsum of calcite, and calcite doesn't share anything with them. In places where evaporation happens often, the halite beds can be as thick as 1,000 meters.

Halite is a soft mineral, therefore it flows easily through pressure. After the evaporation process, the Halite begins to rise through rocks surrounding it into salt domes. Oil prospectors look for salt domes because petroleum often builds up around them.

Streak

The color of a powdered form of a mineral is the mineral's streak. Every mineral has a streak. Some streaks are the same color as the rock they came from, others are totally different. The streak of Halite is white. To determine a mineral's streak, you rub the mineral against a piece of unglazed porcelain, also known as a streak plate. The color of the mark left on the streak plate is the color of the mineral's streak.

Luster

Luster is the way a surface reflects light. There are three types of luster; metallic, submetallic, and nonmetallic. A metallic luster resembles metal, therefore the surface is shiny. A submetallic is less shiny than the metallic and a nonmetallic is very dull. Halite has a vitreous luster that gives it a brilliant, glassy look. A vitreous luster is a nonmetallic luster.

 

 

 

Color

Minerals come in many different colors and many times the same mineral can be found in a variety of shades. While color is one quick way of identifying a mineral, it is not always accurate. Due to impurities, 2 minerals that are the same may be different colors. Also, if some minerals such as pyrite are exposed it weather for a while, it will change black. Halite is commonly found in shades of white or clear but when impurities kick in it can be blue, purple, pink, yellow, or green.

Cleavage and Fracture

Minerals break in different ways depending on the arrangement of their atoms. When a mineral tends to break along a flat surface it is called cleavage. Halite has cleavage. It breaks in three directions at right angles along flat surfaces.

When a mineral has the tendency to break unevenly along curved and irregular surfaces, it is called fracture. Halite’s' fracture is conchoidal, meaning it breaks into smooth, shell like divots.

Scientists use Mohs' Hardness Scale to determine the hardness of a mineral. Mohs' Hardness Scale was devised in 1822 by a German mineralogist named Friedrich Moh. The scale takes 10 common minerals such as Diamonds and Quartz and rates them 1(weakest)-10(hardest).

A minerals hardness is determined by scratching it against one of the 10 minerals on Mohs' scale. If your mineral scratches Mohs' it is harder. If Mohs' mineral scratches yours, Mohs' mineral is harder.

Halite has a hardness of 2-2.5, therefor it is only harder than talc on Mohs' scale.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Special Properties

Some minerals carry rare properties. Rare properties can be anything from having magnetism to having radioactivity to being fluorescent to even causing an optical illusion when placed over an object. Halite has a rare property, it has a very distinguished taste of salt, hence the nickname 'rock salt'. Also, Halite can be either transparent or translucent. Because they vary in color, some forms of the mineral are transparent, meaning you can see through them and others are translucent, meaning you light can pass through but you can’t really see through.