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Thread: Any Geologists on here , identify this radioactive rock ??

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    Any Geologists on here , identify this radioactive rock ??

    I bought a Geiger Counter off eBay , Not sure why I really hope it doesn't come in handy .

    But It occurred to me to wave it over Val's Rock Collection & it went off it nut on one little sample . I don't think we picked it up at Mary Kathleen , Anyway within but 15mm the radiation is off the scale , like imminent death levels .

    .09 is normal background level

    So any clues what this rock would be , it has ruby red crystals at the top . Off to Bunnings to buy some lead to make a box for that sucker.






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    Don’t know about the red bit,, but could the green bit be Uranium in its raw state?

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    Kryptonite ........?


    Torbernite - Wikipedia

    In all seriousness , a lead box may not cut it !

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    I was wondering why ur glowing in the dark 🤣🤣

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    Not really off the scale.....

    It’s only running double background.

    Do you really need to store in lead?? Lead is a good medium as we store our sources in lead vessels.

    Shielding - Time - Distance

    For the short periods you are looking at your rocks the exposure is next to nothing unless you hide them under you pillow.

    How close does you meter start picking up a change.?

    The highest exposure we see over a three month period on our badges is low 4’s. That’s the operators working around hot stuff for the bulk of shift.

    Interestingly some steel recyclers in Brisbane have meters over the entrance gate and reject contaminated loads.

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    What a interesting find, always thought about rock collecting... anyway

    *Could be a sample of Uranite or "U rock" as its known in the rock game (ok ok I am full of it, but google did return good interesting results!)
    *Also safety with regards to small samples is: wear gloves when handling, keep handling to a minimum, dont lick it, store in plastic (clear to view) containers and then if in a display cabinets will block out any radiation coming out of it.

    This has sparked my interest......
    Regards
    Daz


  7. #7
    Tombie Guest

    Any Geologists on here , identify this radioactive rock ??

    Have you got a UV torch / source?
    I’m hoping it fluoresces under UV.

    BTW - don’t touch with your hands and then touch your eyes or mouth, even by accident.

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    Quote Originally Posted by DazzaTD5 View Post
    What a interesting find, always thought about rock collecting... anyway

    *Could be a sample of Uranite or "U rock" as its known in the rock game (ok ok I am full of it, but google did return good interesting results!)
    *Also safety with regards to small samples is: wear gloves when handling, keep handling to a minimum, dont lick it, store in plastic (clear to view) containers and then if in a display cabinets will block out any radiation coming out of it.

    This has sparked my interest......
    Its a great adjunct to outback touring. We always carry a metal detector & UV light ( & now it seems a geiger counter )

    Walking about at night & looking at the ground with a UV light you can find Fluorescing minerals & other gems. Downside is your vehicle becomes heavier through the trip as you load it up with samples.

    Found these in about 1/2 hour in this one spot.

















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    Quote Originally Posted by goingbush View Post
    I bought a Geiger Counter off eBay , Not sure why I really hope it doesn't come in handy .

    But It occurred to me to wave it over Val's Rock Collection & it went off it nut on one little sample . I don't think we picked it up at Mary Kathleen , Anyway within but 15mm the radiation is off the scale , like imminent death levels .

    .09 is normal background level

    So any clues what this rock would be , it has ruby red crystals at the top . Off to Bunnings to buy some lead to make a box for that sucker.





    I sent your pic to my BIL, who is a geophysisist, and he said it looks like Torbanite, a green uranium mineral and the red on top may be garnet but hard to tell from pic.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Tombie View Post
    Have you got a UV torch / source?
    I’m hoping it fluoresces under UV.

    BTW - don’t touch with your hands and then touch your eyes or mouth, even by accident.
    Good idea, I'll check it out tonight . If it fluoresces I'll put camera on tripod and get a photo.

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