Disciplines

Mineralogy

min-uh-RAL-uh-jee

Branch of Geology

Citation Formats

General Reference

Earth and Environment Atlas. "Mineralogy." Accessed August 29, 2026. https://dev-earth.interactiveatlas.org/disciplines/mineralogy.

APA Style

Earth and Environment Atlas. (n.d.). Mineralogy. Retrieved August 29, 2026, from https://dev-earth.interactiveatlas.org/disciplines/mineralogy

BibTeX

@misc{earthandenvironmentatlas-mineralogy,
  author = {Earth and Environment Atlas},
  title = {Mineralogy},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://dev-earth.interactiveatlas.org/disciplines/mineralogy},
  note = {Accessed August 29, 2026}
}

The study of minerals, the naturally occurring, chemically distinct solids rocks are built from: what they are made of, how their atoms pack into a crystal lattice, and what that structure predicts about hardness, cleavage and color.

Facts

Central Question

Mineralogy is a subject of geology specializing in the scientific study of the chemistry, crystal structure, and physical properties of minerals and mineralized artifacts. 1

Scope

Mineralogy studies the chemistry, crystal structure, physical properties and formation of minerals, the naturally occurring inorganic solids that make up rocks. 1

Significance

Mineral identification underlies mining and materials science, and mineral assemblages record the pressure, temperature and chemical conditions under which a rock formed. 1

Cross-Tradition Connections