Glow-in-the-dark minerals
Archived article from Nov 18, 2002
Vividly hued fluorescent minerals are on display as part of the new Anne and Milton Hershhorn Fluorescent Mineral Exhibit at the Rutgers Geology Museum.
The minerals, most of which are from New Jersey, are part of the 6,000-specimen mineral collection of Milton Hershhorn, who donated his collection to the museum last year, shortly before both he and his wife, Anne, passed away. The spectacular exhibit displays and explains fluorescence in minerals, a phenomenon in which specimens emit vivid colors of visible light when they are exposed to ultraviolet rays.
"My father was as dedicated to education as he was to fluorescent minerals. We are most pleased that my father's collection will continue to intrigue students through their beauty as art objects and through the scientific stories they tell," said Mark Hershhorn, son of the collector and a member of the Rutgers Board of Overseers.
Fluorescence in minerals occurs when ultraviolet light waves, invisible to the human eye, are absorbed by a mineral's atoms and then emitted back to the viewer. The minerals in the Hershhorn exhibit emit mostly brilliant red and green.
The Geology Museum is in Geology Hall on the Old Queen's campus. Hours are Monday 1 to 4 p.m. and Tuesday through Friday 9 a.m. to noon. For weekend dates and hours, call ext. 2-7243. For more information, visit the museum's Web site at geology.rutgers.edu/museum.shtml.
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