The 1,032nd meeting of 

The Mineralogical Society

of

Southern California

MSSC ZOOM PRESENTATION

  

Program: Mineral Luminescence:

Examples from The G. Waychunas Collection 

presented by: Glen Waychunas

Friday, November 8, 2024 at  7:30 pm.

See program notes below

Visitors are always welcome

About us…

The MSSC is a member of the California Federation of Mineralogical Societies and is dedicated to the dissemination of general knowledge of the mineralogical and related earth sciences through the study of mineral specimens.  We are a scientific non-profit organization that actively supports those endeavors through public outreach, field study and related programs.

For more information info@mineralsocal.org


Members….Action Needed!  Protect your hobby.

CFMS Electronic Communication: Update on National Monument proposals from Ruth Hildago

“There is a push for President Biden to declare two monuments in Southern California, the Chuckwalla National Monument (660,000 acres) and the Kw’tsan National Monument (390,000 acres). The lands within the proposed monuments include well known collecting sites such as the Hauser Geode Beds and Chuckwalla collecting sites and the Dumortierotie, kyanite, petrified wood/palm collecting sites respectively. 

A bill to establish the Chuckwalla National Monument was just introduced last year, https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/senate-bill/4132/text.
There isn’t even legislation for the Kw’tsan National Monument. It was proposed along with another monument, the Sattitla National Monument in NorCal, via a joint resolution, SJR-17 was revised to focus on Sattitla National Monument and it unfortunately PASSEDhttps://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240SJR17

As you can see from the map below, these two Monuments would close a huge swath of land to our hobby.

Write your reps and ask them to oppose these proposed monuments. The time to act is NOW.


Key points:  Explain you’re a Recreational Rock and Mineral Collector, aka Rockhound and are concerned a Presidential Proclamation would close the lands within the footprint of the monuments to Recreational Rock and Mineral Collecting.  These Monuments were proposed within the last year, with little to no input from local Stakeholders. A Proclamation would be premature.  Designation of huge swaths of land was never the intent of  The Antiquities Act.  Creating these huge monuments totally over 1 million acres would be an abuse of the Antiquities Act.
 

Pink is the proposed Chuckwalla National Monument. Right below it in blue/green outline is the proposed Kw’tsan National Monument.”

image.png

Please copy the attached pdf and send a letter of opposition to your legislators!

Find your reps here: 

https://findyourrep.legislature.ca.gov/

https://www.congress.gov/members/find-your-member

Can’t hurt to include the White House too:  https://www.whitehouse.gov/contact


Notice of July 29, 2023 regarding Mojave Trails National Monument.  Reprinted with permission from San Diego Mineral & Gem Society.  Great commentary in the notice by its author, Lisbet Thorensen, SDMG’s Public Lands Representative.  Thank You, SDMG and Lisbet.  Angie Guzman, MSSC President.  Please click here to read article and commentary.


Program Notes: Friday, November 8, 2024 at 7:30, join us for Mineral Luminescence: Examples from The G. Waychunas Collection. Presented by Glenn Waychunas 

Of the more than 3000 specimens I have in my luminescent mineral collection, I will show photos of some of the most interesting and colorful, including a few personally collected in Sweden, Namibia and Australia. Then I will very briefly review how luminescent mechanisms operate, including delayed luminescence (phosphorescence, thermoluminescence, afterglow). After this, I will examine two minerals that show interesting diversity in luminescence: fluorite and apatite. Fluorite often luminesces bright blue, but we will see that other emission is possible, sometimes showing interesting zonation. With apatite many luminescence colors are often seen, sometimes with several in the same specimen, and with complex zonation. Sometimes different colors can be excited by different UV wavelengths. I will conclude by answering questions about luminescence, collecting luminescent minerals, and UV light sources. 

Glenn Waychunas is a visiting scientist at Caltech (Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences) and a scientific associate at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. He received his Ph.D. in 1979 from UCLA. His research work has focused on sorption of ions on mineral interfaces, along with near surface aqueous solution and solid structure. He has also made contributions to nanoscience, geochemistry, non-linear spectroscopy, x-ray spectroscopy and luminescence spectroscopy. Most recently, with George Rossman, he has been characterizing activators in minerals with poorly understood luminescence. 


SPECIAL ZOOM MEETING NOTICE

MSSC members will be automatically on the invite list each month.

Non Members, you must request to attend the MSSC zoom meeting every month Email our Speakers chair, Carolyn Seitz at speakers@mineralsocal.org  no later than the Thursday before the scheduled meeting   Please include “ZOOM Meeting” in the subject line of your response. We will send you the meeting link.


Upcoming Events

all events, except field trips are via  ZOOM

  • December 13, 2024: Nathalie Brandes – From Gold to Lead
  • January 3, 2025: TBD
  • February 14, 2025:Chris Stefano: TBD
  • Board Meeting, Sunday January 12, 2025 at 1:00 pm, all are welcome to attend
  • Annual Banquet: January 18, 2025- Save the date, details coming soon!    Silent Auction donations are requested.

The MSSC is pleased to offer the updated 2023 edition of Bob Pedersen’s X- Dana 

X-Dana Mineral Spreadsheet