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By the mineral color, streak color, luster, hardness, the property of the mineral, if it's fracture or cleavage and it's specific gravity. Those are just basic, so there's many other ways to ID a mineral.
by simply testing the streak of the mineral. all minerals have a different streak take a streak plate and scrape the rock down it in a straight line and the color should tell you what mineral it is :) that's the best way.
Luster is not a good property for identifying minerals because many minerals look similar. Your best way of knowing which mineral is which is by measuring their hardness.
Begin by taking a look at the mineral's color, Examine the mineral and take note of its surface features,Get out the materials needed for the hardness test (see Things You'll need), The number is the hardness, followed by the characteristics of a mineral of that hardness and an example, Next find out your mineral's luster,Now for the streak test, You can also identify a mineral by the way it breaks. If it breaks along a smooth, flat surface (such as mica), it has cleavage. If your mineral breaks along rough, jagged surfaces, it has fracture. Thats all you need to do.
A streak plate, or unglazed white porcelain tile, is used to perform streak tests which can help to identify minerals. Rubbing the mineral on the streak plate will finely powder it and reveal the color of the powder, which in some cases is quite different from the color of the mineral. Eg: hematite is black but has a red streak - a good way to tell you have hematite instead of one of the many other shiny black minerals.
The worst way to identify a mineral is by tasting it. When you are classifying a mineral by tasting it doesn't do much. So taste is the worst way to identify a mineral.
Color alone is not the best way to identify a mineral because many minerals have the same color or more than one color. Mineral color can be highly variable and it can change depending on surroundings.
Color alone is not the best way to identify a mineral because many minerals have the same color or more than one color. Mineral color can be highly variable and it can change depending on surroundings.
the least accurate way to identify a mineral
The observable color is the least dependable method of mineral identification.
what is the most reliable way to identify a mineral?
FALSE!! You identify the mineral by its streak because the color can change and its appearance can also change when in contact with or interacted with water air or other impurities!
yes
Hardness alone is not a good way to identify a mineral, other properties such as streak color, cleavage, opacity, ect also need to be taken into consideration. There is no "quick way" to properly identify a mineral.
These are not specific tests.
color
It's hard