Properties of Minerals Students should write notes in yellow

COLOR what you observe with your eyes can change due to impurities, water, and air NOT the best way to identify a mineral

STREAK the color of the powder of a mineral not always the same color as the color of the mineral not affected by water and air more reliable to identify minerals than color

LUSTER the way in which a mineral reflects light can be metallic or nonmetallic some common words to describe nonmetallic luster are glassy, waxy, silky, and earthy

HARDNESS a measure of the ability of a mineral to resist scratching Mohs’ Hardness Scale talc is the softest (1), and diamonds are the hardest (10)

DENSITY The ratio of the mass of a substance to the volume of a substance. D= M/V

CLEAVAGE a mineral splitting along smooth flat surfaces clean breaks

FRACTURE a mineral breaking along either curved or irregular surfaces breaks in rough, jagged pieces instead of clean lines