Hawaii's Kilauea Volcano Is Now Raining Green Gemstones
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Something unusual and beautiful is accompanying all the havoc and destruction caused by Hawaii's Kīlauea. The erupting volcano has caused tragedy for the residents on the Big Island who live near her slopes. But Kīlauea has also been spouting thousands of examples of a small green mineral known as olivine.
Over the past couple of months, CBN News has reported on the lava flows and the boulders shot out of the crater by the volcano. Now it appears it is raining these little green gemstones all around the slopes.
But don't think you can run off to Hawaii to strike it rich. Olivine is an incredibly common mineral - chemically speaking, it's magnesium iron silicate. Still, geologists say finding the mineral in lump form called peridot is quite rare, according to the website ScienceAlert.
However, residents of the Big Island are not having much trouble picking up the pea-sized crystals.
Erin Jordan posted several photos of the gems on Twitter that her friends in Hawaii found.
"Friends of mine live in Hawaii, right next to the area impacted by the most recent lava flows. In the midst of the destruction nearby & stress of the unknown, they woke up to this - tiny pieces of olivine all over the ground. It is literally raining gems. Nature is truly amazing," she wrote.
Friends of mine live in Hawaii, right next to the area impacted by the most recent lava flows. In the midst of the destruction nearby & stress of the unknown, they woke up to this - tiny pieces of olivine all over the ground. It is literally raining gems. Nature is truly amazing. pic.twitter.com/inJWxOp66t
— Erin Jordan (@ErinJordan_WX) June 11, 2018
The crystals are formed when the eruptions shoot magma high into the air. Then the magnesium iron silicates transform into olivine crystals before they hit the ground.
Geologists and jewelers say the lovely green rocks won't make you a ton of money since it's not exactly an expensive gem. But as Jordan wrote in her tweet, "nature is truly amazing."
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