News Nuggets

Newsletter of the Albuquerque Gem & Mineral Club

The show is Over and it was a Huge Success! Just Awesome! So, everyone that helped make this show great give yourself a big pat on the back. What things do I consider when I say the show is a success? Lots of things. The people made most of our dealers happy. Some of these folks came for the cycle show and then came over to browse and shop. And a number of new folks had never heard of our show before and are definitely coming back next year.

The silent auction was a great success (thanks to Mike Potts) in terms of popularity and income.

Hank & Rosemary Miller did great with the door prizes and raffle.

Gwen, Bob & Jan Burrows, Suzanne Seymour, and Carolyn Wood kept the troops in coffee and power pills.

No one got hurt.

As far as I know only a few items were stolen and these were small.

Take down went smoothly and ended late (thanks to Grant and Kimberly staying to the bitter end). Et hoc genus omne.

Did we end up with No glitches? No. But no glitch was really terrible. And they seemed to be fewer than other years.

The show committee will be having a detailed post-mortem in the near future. If you have some good ideas, let us know about them.

Well! I certainly can go on (and on and on). Thanks to everyone that helped and I'll see you at the next meeting on April 24^th.Paul Hlava

060412

The Junior Table at the show was a great success, thanks to the generosity of wonderful club members who donated specimens and volunteered their time at the Junior Table. This year, interest from kids increased by leaps and bounds and sales to kids doubled. A number of students came with assignments and asked questions like  'what is the difference between a rock and a mineral  '? Luckily, Karen Peterson had provided posters with just that kind of information. Thirty names and contact numbers for kids and parents interested in the Junior Club were submitted to the Junior Club for follow up. Hopefully the Junior Club will grow as a result.

The number of volunteers who worked at the table increased from 4 people last year to 12 people this year, some who volunteered for multiple shifts. The mineral donations and preparation time came from 25 sources this year, and the table was well supplied with good mineral specimens and wonderful door prizes. In addition to club members, Mama's Minerals, the Mineral Museum at New Mexico Tech, and the Museum of Natural History provided mineral specimens, mineral identification and support.

It would take almost an entire column of the newsletter to individually thank the many club members who supported this effort. Please know that your participation has not gone unrecognized. The show is looking for new Junior Table coordinators for next year. A team approach is highly recommended; the organization and planning is almost too much for one person to do. Please consider doing it - the show experience was, for me, personally satisfying and fun - and it can be for you also.

- Charlotte Cooper

It is with great sadness that I have to inform you about the recent death of Russell Spiering. Russell passed away on March 31, 2006 after a recent diagnosis of cancer. He was an accomplished custom jeweler who specialized in gold and faceted stone jewelry. He had served on the club's board of directors as club treasurer during a difficult period in the club's recent history. He was always willing to share his knowledge and experience as a jeweler with others and was a gentle soul. Bye Russell.

For anyone who hasn't heard yet, the 2006 TotE show was a great success. I was amazed and gratified at the number of new members who had just joined the club and who immediately volunteered to work on the show. That's the kind of volunteerism we need to keep a large club like the AGMC running smoothly. And you longer term members, thanks again and again for another year's effort with the show.

We still have some gaps in the refreshment volunteers during the summer months. Please talk to Kathy Lawicki and help her just one month with the refreshments. The club will reimburse you for the cost of the goodies you bring.

We also need to start thinking about next year's board of directors. We need some new blood on the board! Talk to any current board member or me if you are at all interested in participating in the business aspects of running the corporation. Every position on the board needs to be learned and the only way to do that is to attend board meetings. Enough for now.

- Orlando

President -- Orlando Garcia, Home phone: 345-0520, E-mail: jabog02@msn.com

VP-Membership & VP-Programs --Kimberly Richie, Home phone: 296-8847, E-mail: cattrax55@wmconnect.com

Secretary & Junior Club -- Suzanne Seymour, Home phone: 877-3621, Email: suzannerox5@aol.com

Historian -- Dave Moats, Home phone: 892-8163, E-mail: beepbeep59@hotmail.com

Editor & Junior Club - Paul Napolitano, Home phone: 856-2157, E-mail: tcot@spinn.net

Show Chair - Paul Hlava, Home phone: 255-5478, E-mail: hpf5@qwest.net

VP Ð Programs -- Mike Sanders, Home phone: 256-1797, E-mail: mrsande@sandia.gov

Special Events -- Orlando Garcia, Home phone: 345-0520, E-mail: jabog02@msn.com

Past President -- Grant Kuck, Home phone: 323-1520, E-mail: none at the moment.

The Club Newsletter; News Nuggets exists to assist the membership in communications and to provide information on club activities. Contributions from all members are welcome on any information that will promote club activities or that would be of interest to club members. News Nuggets is scheduled to be mailed approximately one week prior to the monthly meeting. Mail news, articles or comments to: Paul Napolitano, Editor, 7304 Yorktown, NE, Albuquerque, NM 87109, or email to tcot@spinn.net.

The Albuquerque Gem & Mineral Club was organized on January 22, 1944. The club is a non-profit organization dedicated to the advancement and enjoyment of the Earth Sciences and associated subjects. Its primary purpose is the exchange of information and the furtherance of knowledge of Mineralogy, Fossils, Geology, Rock Cutting and Gem Faceting and to stimulate interest in the development of these studies.

All Meetings are held at the NM Museum of Natural History, Albuquerque, NM. The general meeting is held on the 4^th Monday of the month (unless otherwise announced) at 7:30 p.m. The Junior Club meets at 6:30 p.m. prior to the general meeting. Board of Directors meetings are held at 7:30 pm on the first Monday of each month. (Call for location). The public is welcome to both meetings.

Being a member of the Albuquerque Gem and Mineral Club does not make you an official of the AGMC. This makes it inappropriate for any member to take on any responsibility or authority for any club activity without explicit instruction from the AGMC Board of Directors.

EACH and EVERYONE involved in the Gem/Mineral Show set-up and dinner.  It is always a great team effort and comments, critiques, & ideas are welcome. Now is a good time for a review. I have a round glass bowl and a few utensils to be claimed.  Thank you for your Time, Laughter, and Fellowship.  We had plenty of food and now the dealers are hooked on "Rudy's".

Hugs, Gwen

In March, Lannois Neely talked about local NM fossils! Lannois kept everyone busy learning with lots of fossils that were passed around as well as samples for the kids to add to their collections. Grant Kuck also provided generous donations of several Jemez area fossils.

- Paul Napolitano

21-23--DENVER, COLORADO: Show, "Colorado Mineral and Fossil Show"; Martin Zinn Expositions; Holiday Inn-Denver Central, 4849 Bannock St.; Fri. 10-6, Sat. 10-6, Sun. 10-5; free admission; 80 wholesale and retail dealers, minerals, fossils, gems, jewelry, free shuttle between shows; contact Martin Zinn Expositions, P.O. Box 665, Bernalillo, NM 87004, fax (505) 867-0073; e-mail: mz0955@aol.com; Web site: www.mzexpos.com.

21-23--WICHITA, KANSAS: 53rd annual show, "Kansas Ageless Wonders"; Wichita Gem & Mineral Society; Cessna Activity Center, 2700 George Washington Blvd.; Fri. 9-7, Sat. 10-7, Sun. 10-5; exhibits, demonstrations, dealers, education day Fri. 9-3; contact Lyle Koerper, (316) 722-7115, or Gene Maggard, (316) 742-3746; e-mail: pmaggard@southwind.net.

29-30--LUBBOCK, TEXAS: Annual sale and show; Lubbock Civic Center; Sat. 10-6, Sun. 10-5; jewelry, gems, minerals, rocks, fossils; contact Archie Scott, (806) 894-1584; e-mail: ass3@door.net.

6-7--ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA: 47th annual show; Searchers Gem & Mineral Society; Brookhurst Community Center, 2271 W. Crescent Ave., at Brookhurst; contact Beth Pelfrey, (714) 774-2754; e-mail: beth714sc-rocks@yahoo.com.

6-7--KINGMAN, ARIZONA: Annual show, "Gems of Arizona"; Mohave County Gemstoners; Kingman Academy of Learning, 3419 Harrison St.; contact Dave, (928) 692-3797, or Bill, (928) 565-9586.

12-14--COSTA MESA, CALIFORNIA: Show, "West Coast Gem & Mineral Show"; Martin Zinn Expositions; Holiday Inn-Bristol Plaza, 3131 S. Bristol; Fri. 10-6, Sat. 10-6, Sun. 10-5; free admission; 100 dealers, China, Brazil, Russia, India; contact Martin Zinn Expositions, P.O. Box 665, Bernalillo, NM 87004, fax (505) 867-0073; e-mail: mz0955@aol.com; Web site: www.mzexpos.com.

13-14--GRAND JUNCTION, COLORADO: 59th annual show, "Rocks and Minerals of the Colorado Plateau"; Grand Junction Gem & Mineral Club; Two Rivers Convention Center, 1st and Main; contact Don or Marj Gibboney, 193-27 Rd., Grand Junction, CO 81503, (970) 245-2885.

Nacimiento Copper Mine, Sandoval Co, New Mexico

This month we are headed to the Nacimiento copper mine. The ore body is situated in the Agua Zarca sandstone member of the Chinle formation, which is early Triassic in age (245-208 my). The basal conglomerate of the Agua Zarca lies unconformably on the Permian Yeso formation, which forms the foot-wall of the mine and is a reddish - orange siltstone.

Why are we interested in this formation? This is the unit in which copper mineralization has occurred. The minerals that can be found include: azurite, malachite, chalcocite along with other copper/ iron sulfides. These minerals have replaced the fossil plant material found in the Agua Zarca formation. This includes logs! Also found at the mine are pyrite balls and septarian nodules. The minerals form irregular halos and fracture filling.

We will meet at the parking area inside the gate at the mine at 10 AM on the 29^th of April.

The travel time is 2.5 hours from Albuquerque. Any two-wheel drive vehicle will be fine as the roads are paved, except for the last little bit at the mine area.

Directions: From Albuquerque take 1-25 north to NM44 west at the second Bernalillo exit. Follow NM44 northwest to Cuba, NM. At the intersection of NM126 turn right (east) and head east for 5-6 miles to the mine road. Just past the National Forest boundary is the mine road to the north. Park inside the cable.

Caution: There are areas of the property that are dangerous and should be avoided: any old buildings, or plumbing equipment and the open pit, which probably contains a fair amount of sulfuric acid.

Hopefully the weather will be warm, but we will be at 7000 feet so keep that in mind when dressing. Also there are not any facilities near by.

Tools: bring your usual array of tools, cameras, etc!

This has been a great trip for the club in the past, so we should have a good time this time also!

Hope to see you!

- Ron Boyd

The March club meeting was called to order at the appropriate hour by President Orlando Garcia. Orlando advised the crowd about the resounding success of the club-sponsored Treasures of the Earth Show held recently at EXPO NM. This year's show was the best ever!!! Paid attendance was 2315 enthusiastic folks. The dealers report great sales and lots of kids came on Friday (many with worksheets to focus them). Our esteemed Show Chair Paul Hlava was able to capitalize on some free TV exposure (that Kimberly Richie pursued for weeks) at the last minute, and this exposure contributed greatly to the large attendance both during the show and tonight. I saw Paul looking good and sharing his enthusiasm on Channel 4 News at Noon. We owe some gratitude to the staff at the station for helping us get out the word. Thanks all! Other club members were thanked for their generous contributions to our success. Mike Potts managed the silent auction with help from Grant and others. Karen Peterson worked for weeks on assembling specimens and programs for the Juniors. Charlotte Cooper helped her with this aspect and with staffing, signage, and new Junior member sign up during the show. Tom Schmierer bagged and labeled material and donated a big box of material to the Junior Table. And of course these efforts ensured great success for the Junior club and the young public. Amy Penn and Suzanne Seymour put in considerable time preparing liners and risers for the Junior Club display cases. Thanks and a hearty "Well Done" to the usual cast of movers and shakers. Orlando reminded the membership to volunteer for refreshment detail. April, May, and June are unspoken for, and whoever brings the goodies to these meetings needs to plan on 80-100 people enjoying the offerings. Programming for the Junior Club has been arranged for two meetings but Paul and Suzanne would love to talk with anyone who has ideas for future Junior meetings. Thanks to Lannois Neely for this evenings Junior program on fossils and Grant Kuck's fossil donations.

Mike Sanders did his usual fine job of presenting the displays. He said 230 school kids attended Friday and APS has expressed an interest in organizing field trips to the show next year. Eighteen displays were entered and adjudged as follows; 1^st Place Junior went to Rachel Shroyer, and 2^nd Place Junior to Charles Shroyer. They found all the cool stuff in their collection right in their neighborhood!!! In the Senior division the awards were as follows; 1^st Kenny O'Mally, 2^nd Ray DeMark, 3^rd Virgil Lueth, 4^th Ron Boyd. Congratulations to all!

Ron Boyd and Jeff Nekola have arranged our next field trip to the Kinney Brick Plant on April 1^st where fossils can be collected. This location is an active quarry with loose material so hardhats are REQUIRED, as is signup. Two shifts have been set up, 9 AM- Noon and Noon-3 PM. Picks, brick hammers, small chisels, and screwdrivers are recommended to get at the material encased in blue-black shale. The fossils sho"Fossils of New Mexico" to identify your finds.

Mike Sanders introduced the evening"s speaker, Dr. Virgil Lueth, Senior Mineralogist/Economic Geologist and Curator of the Mineral Museum at the New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources in Soccorro. Dr. Lueth obtained a BS in Geology at the University of Wisconsin and after a trip to Big Bend (where he got his socks knocked off), decided to pursue graduate studies at the nearest university, which turned out to be the University of Texas at El Paso. We're very glad he did. And privileged to share his enthusiasm for and extensive knowledge of the geology and geochemistry of rift systems, especially because we are denizens of the Albuquerque Basin, which is part of a rift system extending from near Leadville, Colorado to Naica, Chihuahua, Mexico. Along with this interest in geochemical processes and mineralogy developed a special interest in jarosite, his favorite mineral. Who knew that rusty pyrite, (same thing) was found on Mars? The fact that our planet is geologically active comes as no surprise, but to think of big processes like crustal uplift and faulting unfolding in our back yards is intriguing. The evidence of active hot springs, hot wells, lava flows and ore emplacement is plentiful in New Mexico. And yes, there's hot acid under your feet too. It is sequentially making barite, fluorite, galena, and gypsum and depositing this in whatever open crack or hole it can gain on its way to the surface. Hot acids also carry metals, and this creates ore deposits, too. Exposed oxidized ore deposits of the Rio Grande Rift type are spectacular at Fluorite Ridge and Hansonburg Ridge, aka "jarosite heaven". Another part of modern rift systems is the presence of hot springs, or "geochemical messengers". Notable locals are Radium Hot Springs, Geronimo Hot Springs near T or C, and Jemez Springs. Probably unknown though, is the fact that New Mexico State uses hot wells to heat the university. Down rift past T or C, one can see a lot of blackish rock containing manganese oxide that indicates an ancient hot spring now turned off. The particular structure and elemental components of jarosite makes it easy to date and the jarosite age spectrum is evident at the Barrett Mine. Fission track data from Hansonburg has dated the purple fluorite at 7 million years old and the copper sulfates found with linarite and brochantite at 3-4 million years old. Thanks to the efforts of geologists, geochemists, and a host of others in varying disciplines the ever-evolving picture of our plant is illuminated a pixel at a time. Many thanks to Virgil for sharing his enthusiasm and latest info with us!

I heard it was Dave Miller doing the door prize event and that all winners were ecstatic as usual.

Notes of this meeting were kindly provided by Mary Gibson who stepped into the breach in my unexpected absence. Any omissions or misinterpretations are mine.

• Suzanne Seymour

April, 2006

From the devious mind of Paul Hlava

The Game Plan - I will describe a mineral and you have to guess/decipher/research the name of the mineral and the answers to the other questions asked about uses, history, notable facts, etc. I expect the Top Guns in the club to be able to guess the name off the top of their heads. The learners will need a reference book or two. You will benefit most if you do not ask others for the answers but work it out for yourselves. When you have decided on the name you can compare notes with others or wait for the answers to be announced at the meetings or published in the News Nuggets. Good luck and have fun.

Last year I discussed minerals that are named for geographic localities. This ye'Õs.

This month's MM is often found in many different kinds of vein deposits, from high temperature to low, and it is often associated with quartz, calcite, galena, pyrite, sphalerite, chalcopyrite, etc. It often occurs in euhedral cubes but can also be found as octahedra or highly modified cubes. It has excellent octahedral cleavage, vitreous luster, hardness of 4, and specific gravity of 3.18. Transparent to translucent, it can come in almost any color but purple, green, and blue and common. Color zoning is common.

What is the name of the mineral?

What is the origin of the name?

Name an important physical property named after the mineral.

What is it used for?

Name a well-known NM locality.

Name some other US localities.

Name some world-wide, world-class specimen localities.

What is the name of the mineral? Greenockite (I used this mineral because its name harkens to the theme of our show last month Ð GREEN!).

What was the mineral named for? Lord Greenock (Ch. M. Cathcart, 1783 Ð 1859) soldier and amateur geologist who discovered the mineral in 1841)

What is this mineral mined for? Cadmium (it is cadmium sulfide) but it is only mined because it is associated with Zn ores.

What is the metal used for? (Uses are being restricted because of environmental concerns.) Coatings on other metals for corrosion protection, low melting solder alloys, low friction alloys, Ni-Cd batteries. Also phosphors, pigments, stabilizers in PVC.

What minerals might associate with this mineral? Primary sulfides and secondary minerals of iron, zinc, lead, copper, etc.

What is the name of its polymorph? Hawleyite

Localities - (Just list the famous/important ones)

--NM -

--USA - Paterson, NJ with zeolites; Franklin, NJ; Leesburg, VA; Friendsville, PA; Joplin, MO;

--World - Dumfries, Scotland; Pribram, Czech Rep.: France, Greece, Russia, Italy, Bolivia

Here are some fantastic websites that deal with rocks, minerals and earth science. I'm sure there are hundreds more.

www.mindat.org/index.php

This is a major mineral database, photos, locations, chat rooms and bulletin boards for collecting.

www.mineralcollecting.org

Another mineral database

www.consrv.ca.gov/CGS

California Geological Survey

www.mineralsocal.org

The Mineralogical Society of Southern California

www.geo.utexas.edu/courses/347k/redesign/gem_notes/gemnote_triple_frame.htm

Information on gemstones

www.usgs.gov

US Geological Survey

epod.usra.edu/index.php3

Earth Science picture of the day, new photo every day.

www.nm.blm.gov/recreation/recreation_home.htm

BLM New Mexico

geoinfo.nmt.edu/index.html

New Mexico Bureau of Mines, great info, maps

www.desertusa.com/index.html

Desert USA. A monthly newsletter about the geology, animals, info on the SW US.

www.placenames.com/

All the place names in the US. Great site.

terraserver.homeadvisor.msn.com/default.aspx

Terra Server. Look at the earth from space, maps

www.topozone.com

Topo maps of the US

local.live.com

Maps of the US

earth.google.com

Google Earth. Amazing views of Earth from Space.

www.ganoksin.com/borisat/tip_sear.htm

Complete instructions for silversmiths

www.gemhut.com/info.htm

Infomation on Gemstones

www.fs.fed.us/gpnf/volcanocams/msh

Just in case you want to check the goings on with Mt. St. Helens. The picture is updated every 5 minutes.

• Martin Wormser

Former club treasurer Russ Spiering died March 31, 2006 about 7:30 A.M. of liver cancer. Russ was one of our show dealers for the last 10 or so years. He designed and hand made all of his high-end jewelry. Russ was 56. Kathryn said it was quick, no chemo, no radiation, and no pain. He wanted to be cremated, so Kathryn transported the ashes to his hometown in Texas for a family memorial. There will be a gathering in Albuquerque later on.  If you would like to send a card to Kathryn, contact Paul Hlava for the address. Also contact Paul if you want to come to the gathering 255-5478.

Thanks.

This month's Junior Club meeting will be a surprise, as final arrangements were still in the works at press time. Given the interesting topics we've covered in the past, you won't want to miss this one either!

Sally Williams

Cretaceous Sharks of New Mexico

Sally has a B.S. in Biology and a B.A. in geology from the University of New

Mexico. She just completed a Masters of Science in Geology from UNM. The Topic of her thesis was Late Cretaceous Selachian Biostratigraphy in New Mexico. Sally has worked mostly on Paleozoic and Mesozoic fishes from New Mexico for about 6 years.