Saléeite, Lake Boga, Victoria
Mineral Matters #415
Continuing on with the Facebook Mineral of the Week Group’s selected theme of uranium minerals, here is another one of the uranium species that occurs at Lake Boga, Victoria.
Saléeite, formula Mg(UO2)2(PO4)2·10H2O, is one of my favourite uranium secondary minerals. Named after Belgian geologist, Achille Léon Salée, it is highly fluorescent under ultraviolet light.
The Type Locality, the place from which the species was first described, is Shinkolobwe Mine, Shinkolobwe, Kambove Territory, Haut-Katanga, DR Congo, DR Congo is the Democratic Republic of the Congo (previously Zaire), not to be confused with the Republic Of The Congo.
At Lake Boga, saléeite is one of three yellow fluorescent uranium minerals recorded, the others being meta-autunite and metanatroautunite. Saléeite was fairly commonly encountered in the quarry, particularly near “Ulrichite Corner”.
Below: Saléeite, Lake Boga, Victoria under longwave ultraviolet light. Width of view 5mm.
Below: The same specimen under normal light.
Those crystals are very pretty.
Goodness. How could one get confused with the locality? Signed: DR. Congo M.D.