Norseman opal mine, Norseman, Dundas Shire, Western Australia, Australiai
| Regional Level Types | |
|---|---|
| Norseman opal mine | Mine |
| Norseman | Town |
| Dundas Shire | Shire |
| Western Australia | State |
| Australia | Country |
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Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):
32° 7' 54'' South , 121° 41' 57'' East
Latitude & Longitude (decimal):
Type:
Köppen climate type:
Nearest Settlements:
| Place | Population | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Norseman | 982 (2012) | 10.5km |
Located 11 kilometres north-west of Norseman.
Access to the deposit is available by paying a small fee to the Norseman Tourist Bureau. It is one of the few official fossicking sites in Western Australia. A series of trenches have been cut to reveal variously coloured chalcedony, common opal and dendritic opal. The latter is known locally as moss opal, and is translucent or opaque opal with inclusions (usually chlorite, iron oxides or clay) forming dendritic patterns within the opal. It is relatively common in the Goldfields region.
Colours found here include brown, white, red, yellow, translucent green (including chromiferous opal) and golden lace opal. The last is a local term for yellow brown opal with black dendritic inclusions.
There is also a public fossicking site for common opal on the west shore of Lake Cowan, along the Norseman to Hyden Road, about 5 kilometres west of Norseman. This site is free, however as a result, material available may not be as high a quality as the Norseman opal mine.
The Mindat co-ordinates are for this second site. The first site is just west of the main highway, and directions can be given by the tourist bureau.
Select Mineral List Type
Standard Detailed Gallery Strunz Chemical ElementsCommodity List
This is a list of exploitable or exploited mineral commodities recorded at this locality.Mineral List
2 valid minerals.
Detailed Mineral List:
| ⓘ Opal Formula: SiO2 · nH2O |
| ⓘ Opal var. Common Opal Formula: SiO2 · nH2O |
| ⓘ Quartz Formula: SiO2 |
| ⓘ Quartz var. Chalcedony Formula: SiO2 |
Gallery:
List of minerals arranged by Strunz 10th Edition classification
| Group 4 - Oxides and Hydroxides | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| ⓘ | Quartz var. Chalcedony | 4.DA.05 | SiO2 |
| ⓘ | 4.DA.05 | SiO2 | |
| ⓘ | Opal | 4.DA.10 | SiO2 · nH2O |
| ⓘ | var. Common Opal | 4.DA.10 | SiO2 · nH2O |
List of minerals for each chemical element
| H | Hydrogen | |
|---|---|---|
| H | ⓘ Opal | SiO2 · nH2O |
| H | ⓘ Opal var. Common Opal | SiO2 · nH2O |
| O | Oxygen | |
| O | ⓘ Quartz var. Chalcedony | SiO2 |
| O | ⓘ Opal | SiO2 · nH2O |
| O | ⓘ Quartz | SiO2 |
| O | ⓘ Opal var. Common Opal | SiO2 · nH2O |
| Si | Silicon | |
| Si | ⓘ Quartz var. Chalcedony | SiO2 |
| Si | ⓘ Opal | SiO2 · nH2O |
| Si | ⓘ Quartz | SiO2 |
| Si | ⓘ Opal var. Common Opal | SiO2 · nH2O |
Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality
Australia
- Western Australia
- Kambalda Nickel Metallogenic ProvinceGeologic Province
- West Australian ElementCraton
- Yilgarn CratonCraton
Australian PlateTectonic Plate
- West Australian Craton
- Eastern Yilgarn CratonCraton
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Norseman opal mine, Norseman, Dundas Shire, Western Australia, Australia