Gypsum occurs on every continent and is the most common of all the sulfate minerals. Since they are salt, the crystals will not last long over time, they dry out and crumble. Let the crystals dry on a rack outside for a couple weeks before bringing them inside. Bring a crowbar or shovel to loosen the crystal growths from the lake bottom. The salt crystals are easy to spot, as they look like small islands protruding above the water level. You should plan on getting salt-encrusted and wet from the knees down. These salt crystals are best harvested in the fall after a long, hot, dry summer when the water level is low. Some are even colored pink due to the algae bloom that happens in the spring. At the bottom, a side view of a larger crystal shows a smaller crystal growing out of it.įor the mineral collector, the Great Salt Lake has some interesting salt crystal growths. Fascinating Salt Crystal Growths The black background highlights the inclusions and crystal size of these specimens. It consists of small, rounded, or spherical, grains (ooides) made up of a nucleus (generally a small mineral grain) and concentric layers of calcium carbonate (lime). Oolitic sand can be found in the lake and on its shores. The lake’s northern arm contains deposits of oil, but it is of poor quality and it is not economically feasible to extract and purify it. US Magnesium operates a plant on the southwest shore of the lake, which produces 14% of the worldwide supply of magnesium, more than any other North American magnesium operation. ![]() Minerals extracted from the lake include sodium chloride (common salt), used in water softeners, salt lick blocks for livestock, and to melt ice on local roadways potassium sulfate, used as a commercial fertilizer and magnesium-chloride brine, used in the production of magnesium metal and chlorine gas, and as a dust suppressant. Solar evaporation ponds at the edges of the lake produce salts and brine (water with high salt content). The Great Salt Lake contributes an estimated $1.3 billion annually to Utah’s economy, including $1.1 billion from industry (primarily mineral extraction), $136 million from recreation, and $57 million from the harvest of brine shrimp. Its shallow, warm waters cause frequent, sometimes heavy lake-effect snows from late fall through spring.Īlthough it has been called “America’s Dead Sea”, the lake provides habitat for millions of native birds, brine shrimp, shorebirds, and waterfowl. And its mineral content is steadily increasing. As it is endorheic (has no outlet besides evaporation), it has very high salinity, so much higher than that of seawater that swimming in it is similar to floating. The three major tributaries to the lake, the Jordan, Weber and Bear rivers, together deposit around 1.1 million tons of minerals in the lake each year. The lake is the largest remnant of Lake Bonneville, a prehistoric pluvial (fed by rainfall) lake that once covered much of western Utah. In terms of surface area, it is the largest lake in the United States that is not part of the Great Lakes region. In an average year, the lake covers an area of around 1,700 square miles, but this measurement fluctuates substantially due to its shallowness.įor instance, in 1963 it reached its lowest recorded level at 950 square miles, but in 1988 the surface area was at the historic high of 3,300 square miles. ![]() Located in the northern part of Utah, the Great Salt Lake is the largest saltwater lake in the Western Hemisphere. ![]() The larger the crystals, the dirtier they are. The gray clay inclusions are clearly seen and a second crystal is growing out of the side. ![]() The largest dirty diamond crystal I collected was 16 cm by 12 cm.
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