I Feel the Earth Move
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Welcome to Bob's Rock Shop
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| Need More Input? Check Out the Shop's Extensive Catalog of Books for Rockhounds! | |||
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Bead Work
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The Photo-Atlas of Minerals DVD V2.0
New Low Low Price - Now Only $19.95 !!!
Order The Photo-Atlas of Minerals DVD
Version 2.0 DVD-ROM for Windows
Sample Photo-Atlas DVD Screens:
Formerly sold at $59.95, the Photo-Atlas of Minerals DVD is simply the most comprehensive mineral reference available. It principle features include:
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- Nearly 16,000 high-resolution mineral specimen images
- Mineralogical data for all known mineral species (over 4,100) - Mineral specimen images from over 3,500 localities - Users can add their own images - Comprehensive descriptive mineralogical and crystallographic data - Audio mineral name pronunciations - Origins of mineral names - Mineral name synonyms and varieties |
- Searchable by properties, locality, chemistry, etc.
- User controlled crystal form drawings - User controlled atomic structure drawings - Includes both Dana & Strunz mineral classifications - Glossary of mineral terms - Users can print the mineral images and data - Generates random and user defined slide shows - Includes a mineral identification game |
- Alone No More
- Martian Meteorite ALH84001 Harbinger of Extraterrestrial Life
- Check out Bob's Martian Touchdown - A Rockhound's Cosmic Encounter with Three Extraterrestrials
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The Mars Phoenix spacecraft has successfully landed on Mars farther north than any previous mission at 68 degrees north latitude, equivalent to that of northern Alaska, where water is believed to exist in the form of ice just below the Martian surface. Phoenix is equipped with some of the most sophisticated and advanced technology ever sent to Mars. The complement of the Phoenix spacecraft and its scientific instruments are ideally suited to uncover clues to the geologic history and biological potential of the Martian arctic. During the course of its three-month mission, a robust robotic arm will dig through the soil to the water ice layer underneath and deliver soil and ice samples to the mission's experiments. On the deck, miniature ovens and a mass spectrometer will provide chemical analysis of trace matter. A chemistry lab-in-a-box will characterize the soil and ice chemistry. Sophisticated maging systems will provide an unprecedented view of Mars spanning 12 powers of 10 in scale. A meteorological station will record the daily weather of the Martian northern plains using temperature and pressure sensors and will play an important role by providing information on the current state of the polar atmosphere and how water is cycled between the solid and gas phases in the Martian arctic. |
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Phoenix Mars Lander in the News
- Phoenix Has Gone Silent: In search of habitable soil, the Mars lander has lost power with no real chance of recovery.
- Phoenix Mars Lander Stops Communicating: After five busy months, NASA’s Phoenix Mars Lander has tasted its last morsel of Martian soil and viewed its last Martian landscape.
- NASA Says Perchlorate Does Not Rule Out Life On Mars: The discovery of an unexpected chemical in Martian soil - one that is considered hazardous here on Earth - says little by itself about the possibility of life on Mars.
- Surprising Signal: Martian soil shows traces of perchlorate, an unexpected chlorine compound.
- NASA Quashes Rumors Of Life On Mars: The fuss started with a relatively restrained news story posted on SpaceRef.com headlined "White House Briefed On Potential For Mars Life."
- Officially Ice: Oven bakes out water - Phoenix mission successes lead to longer lander life.
- Tasting Ice: Phoenix Mars Lander ready to analyze ice if the oven bakes the sample without short-circuiting.
- Pay Dirt: Martian Soil Fit For Earthly Life: Martian soil around the Phoenix lander is slightly alkaline and has enough different minerals that it could support Earth plants and more to the point - microbes - beneath the Martian surface
- Mars OK For Life, So Far: "You could grow asparagus".
- Martian Soil Hints At Water, Nutrients: The first analysis of Red Planet dirt by the Phoenix lander shows what may be some of the requirements for life.
- Our Eyes On Mars: How The Phoenix Lander Sees: If you leave your camera at home on a long vacation, you can buy a disposable one. But that's not an option if you have traveled 422 million miles to another planet.
- Phoenix Touches Martian Ice: NASA's "follow the water" approach to finding life - or evidence of past life - on Mars has finally hit pay dirt.
- Ice On Mars : The Red Planet's white stuff is ice after all.
- Phoenix Finds Ice On Mars: The Mars Phoenix Lander has found ice on the surface of the red planet, a key discovery for the spacecraft as it searches for water and signs of life.
- Disappearing Bright Specks Show Mars Has Ice: Bright crumbs that were visible in one of the trenches dug by the Phoenix Mars Lander are no longer there - leaving mission scientists with only one conclusion: the material was ice that vaporized directly from the solid form in the dry, frigid Martian polar atmosphere.
- Phoenix Probes Martian Soil: The first soil sample baked in the Phoenix Mars Lander shows no signs of water.
- Phoenix Makes First Trench In Science Preserve: The Phoenix Mars Lander has begun digging in an area called "Wonderland", taking its first scoop of soil from a polygonal surface feature within the "national park" region that mission scientists have been preserving for science.
- Phoenix Mars Lander Stops Communicating: After five busy months, NASA’s Phoenix Mars Lander has tasted its last morsel of Martian soil and viewed its last Martian landscape.
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| The Phoenix mission is intended to last 90 days. It may last a little longer, but not much. When the sun drops below the horizon during the Martian winter, there will be no way to recharge the lander's batteries. Once they drain completely, the mission is over. |
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- Rocks in the News
Detailed Silver Price Historical Chart Detailed Gold Price Historical Chart - Beyond The Shadow Of A Doubt? Dark Energy Independently Confirmed: The gravitationally repulsive presence, thought to make up most of the universe, shows its effect on the development of galaxy clusters.
- Dark Energy Pushing Universe Apart: New findings boost the theory that dark energy is pushing apart all the matter in the universe and will continue doing so until no other galaxies except the nearby Andromeda galaxy will be visible from Earth.
- Moon’s Polar Craters Could Hold Lunar Ice: Data from the Lunar Prospector space probe shows that hydrogen on the moon is concentrated into polar craters. If the hydrogen is present as water ice, then the average concentration in some craters corresponds to ten grams of ice in each kilogram of moon rock.
- Life On Mars? Elusive Mineral Bolsters Chances: A research team has found evidence of carbonates, a long-sought mineral that shows Mars was home to a variety of watery environments - some benign, others harsh - and that the acidic bath the planet endured left at least some regional pockets unscathed.
- Polygamy, Paternal Care In Birds Linked To Dinosaur Ancestors: Researchers connect the evolutionary dots linking the polygamous, paternal reproductive patterns of extant birds to the behavior of their extinct dinosaur kin.
- Dinosaur Dads Took Care Of Nest: Surprising finding shows paternal care in birdlike dinos.
- Scientists Abandon Global Warming 'Lie': A United Nations climate change conference in Poland is about to get a surprise from 650 leading scientists who scoff at doomsday reports of man-made global warming - labeling them variously a lie, a hoax and part of a new religion.
- Hubble Spots CO2 On Extrasolar Planet: Carbon dioxide has been found in the atmosphere of a planet orbiting a distant star, a finding that could help astronomers pinpoint the location of extraterrestrial life.
- Titan's Volcanoes Give Cassini Spacecraft Chilly Reception: Data collected during several recent flybys of Titan by the Cassini spacecraft have put another arrow in the quiver of scientists who think the Saturnian moon contains active cryovolcanoes spewing a super-chilled liquid into its atmosphere.
- As Ice Melts, Antarctic Bedrock Is On The Move: As ice melts away from Antarctica, parts of the continental bedrock are rising in response - and other parts are sinking - a finding that will give much needed perspective to satellite instruments that measure ice loss on the continent, and help improve estimates of future sea level rise.
- NASA Delays Next Mission to Mars: Technical glitches have forced a two-year delay to 2011 for the scheduled launch of the Mars Science Lab, a landmark mission which aims to assess whether microbial life ever existed on the red planet and whether it still exists today.
- Rock and Roil: A new study suggests that extreme chemical reactions fired up by meteorite impacts may have jump-started life in the early oceans, rather than delivering its building blocks preformed.
- Meteorites Could Have Thickened Primordial Soup: In recent geological ages, large extraterrestrial bodies colliding with Earth have been associated with worldwide extinctions, but new experiments show that massive impacts that occurred early in our planet's history could have created the raw materials for life.
- Carbon Dioxide Helped Ancient Earth Escape Deathly Deep Freeze: The planet’s present day greenhouse scourge may have played a vital role in helping ancient Earth to escape from complete glaciation.
- New Giant Toothless Pterosaur Species Discovered: A new species of pterosaur has been identified, the largest of its kind to ever be found. It represents an entirely new genus of these flying reptiles that ruled the skies 115 million years ago.
- Another Big One for Indonesia?: Bad news for the survivors of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami: Neither the giant earthquake that triggered the killer wave nor the hundreds of smaller temblors that followed have exhausted the area's pent-up seismic energy.
More Rocks in the News
- Dark Energy Pushing Universe Apart: New findings boost the theory that dark energy is pushing apart all the matter in the universe and will continue doing so until no other galaxies except the nearby Andromeda galaxy will be visible from Earth.
Letters to the Editor
- Say NO to Akaka Governed Public Land: A bitter legislative battle is raging over collecting fossils on public lands.
Chambers Fit For A Queen - A Quest For English Ammonites
- Rock&Gem Feature Article
- More Rock&Gem Online Features:
- A Day in the Life of a Gemologist
- Into the Caves - "California's Underground" at the Oakland, California Museum
- Bingham Canyon Copper - Finding Chalcopyrite at "The Richest Hole on Earth"
- Rockhound in Greece - A Great Destination for Geology... and Humanity
- Honoring Mr. Jones - Our Senior Editor Gets What He Deserves
- Faceting Fascinates - With an Experienced Guide, You, Too, Can Bring Gemstones to Life!
- Tonopah and Goldfield - They Were the Hub of Nevada's Gold Rush
- Agates from the Land of Pumas and Craters
- Mexico's Mystery Stone
- A Lesson in Channel Work
- New England Pegmatites: They Have Been Mined Since America's Earliest Days
- Turquoise: Blue Sky...Blue Stone
- Faceting by Hand: Jack Lahr's Lap-Lap Relies on Primitive Power
- More Rock&Gem Online Features:
- Rock&Gem Magazine Article Search
- Search Back Issues for Articles with Topics of Interest
- Rock&Gem Writer's Guidelines
- An Extensive List of Upcoming Gem and Mineral Shows
- Submit Your Own Club's Show for Publication in Rock&Gem Magazine
Rock&Gem Magazine Show Calendar
- Rock&Gem Craftsman of the Month Contest
- Got a Pet Project Your're Proud of and Want to Show Off?
- Win and Rock&Gem Magazine will Feature Your Work and Throw in a Dremel Tool to Boot
- Entry Details - Browse the Current and Prior Contest Winners
- Win and Rock&Gem Magazine will Feature Your Work and Throw in a Dremel Tool to Boot
- Subscribe to Rock&Gem Magazine
- Enjoy and Learn from Rock&Gem Magazine for less than $1.00 per Issue!
- Need to Change Your Address for a Rock&Gem Magazine Subscription?
- Software for Rockhounds
- Mineral Database and Identification Software: Photo Atlas of Minerals - Lithos - MinSearch - MDI Mineral Database - Geolib - Topaz - Minrls - Digital Rockhound's Companion
- Freeware Screen Savers for Rockhounds: Tucson Show V2001 - Grand Hikes - Minerals V1.0
- Freeware Faceters Companion CD!: Featuring Over 250 Faceting Patterns
- GemCad: Gemstone Design Software
- Ososoft Mineral Label: Freeware Specimen Labeling Software for Rock Collectors!
- RockWare Freeware: Erupt - GeoTrig - Mineral Mastery - Seismic - Magnetic
- Freeware Mars Map: High Resolution Orbiter Camera Global Mosaic
- Freeware Screen Savers for Rockhounds: Tucson Show V2001 - Grand Hikes - Minerals V1.0
- Rock Identification Key
- A Beginner's Guide and Key to Help You Identify and Put a Name on That Rock!
- Learn to ID and Distinguish Basalt, Diabase, Diorite, Gabbro, Granite, Obsidian, Pumice, Rhyolite, Scoria, Gneiss, Marble, Quartzite, Schist, Serpentinite, Slate, Breccia, Conglomerate, Limestone, Sandstone, Shale...
- Mineral Identification Key
- An Online Guide and Key to Aid in the Identification of Field Collected Mineral Specimens
- Covering Several Hundred of the Most Commonly Occurring and Collected Species
- Crystallography and Mineral Crystal Systems
- An Illustrated, Nine-Part Primer on Crystallography and Mineral Crystal Systems
- Mineral Nomenclature: Naming New Minerals
- So You've Discovered a New Mineral and Want to Name It "Spottite" After Your Dog...
- Changes In Mineralogical Nomenclature: Varieties
- Why Rock Scientists Won't Understand the Question When You Ask "What mineral is amethyst a variety of"?
- Grand Hikes
- A Virtual Tour and Rockhound's Hiking Guide for the Grand Canyon
- Stromatolite Fossils in the Hakatai Shale - A Day Hike from Phantom Ranch
- Comanche Point Vicinity - An Overnight Hike to Spectacular Grand Canyon Supergroup Views
- Genesis V2.0 - God's Grand Work Week - A Grand Canyon Geology Primer
- The 1869 Expedition - An Account of the First Grand Canyon Float Trip
- Grand Hikes Screen Saver V1.0 - A Complimentary Grand Canyon Screen Saver
- Bob's Grand Canyon Backcountry Equipment Checklist - Don't Leave Home Without It!
- Stromatolite Fossils in the Hakatai Shale - A Day Hike from Phantom Ranch
- Alcyone
- A Faceted Gemstone Design for CZ Inspired by the Pleiadians - Designed by Bob Keller
Perfect Transfer
- Interested in Faceting? Check Out this Feature for Faceters!
- Currently Featured Cut: Spinning Wheel 40
- Gateway to Gemstone Designs on the Internet - Download Over 300 Faceting Diagrams with Cutting Instructions!
- Browse and Download the Freeware Faceters Companion CD
- Currently Featured Article: A Graphical Presentation of Brightness in the Standard Round Brilliant
- Index of Online Faceting Articles - Faceting How-to and Tips from Many Facetors and Gemstone Designers!
- Online Tangent Ratio and Gem Weight Calculators
- Content and Information for Faceters
- Currently Featured Cut: Spinning Wheel 40
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- Tucson Gem and Mineral Show Reports
- Browse the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show with Bob!
- How to Wirewrap
- A Step-by-Step Pendant Design for Faceted Stones that Does Away With Claws
- Featured Articles by John Betts
Advice for Beginners
Anthony's Nose, New York
A Field Guide to Mineral Collectors
Mineral Prices: Why so High?Dealing with Dealers
Mineral Cleaning
Largest Mineral Crystals on Record
Display Lighting of Minerals
The Great Fresnoite Discovery of 1998
- Scott's Big Score in California's San Benito Mountains
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- Rockhounding Graves Mountain
- Collecting Rutile and Other Minerals at this Famous Georgia Locality
- Collecting at the Bunker Hill Mine
- Ron and Rose-Marie's Most Excellent Bunker Hill Mine Adventure
- Gypsum Rosettes
- Collecting at the Red River Floodway in Winnipeg, Canada
- Micromounter's Mecca
- A Visit to the Micromounter's Swap Room at the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show
- Check Out Tim Jokela's The Top Ten Reasons to Get Into Micromounting
- Anatomy of a Three-Headed Sphere Machine
- Interested in Rolling Your Own?
- Cabochon Making 101
- Cabbing with Tucson's Old Pueblo Lapidary Club
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- Feldspar
- An Introduction to the Feldspar Minerals by Anita D. Westlake
- Purple Passion Prospect
- Wulfenite Collecting near Wickenburg, Arizona
- Rock and Fossil Stamps of the United States
- A Preview Page of the Shop's Topical Stamp Catalog for Rockhounds
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- Mineralogical Meanderings
- The Hardness of Minerals and Rocks
- Streaking Minerals - Streak Testing
- Collecting Micrometeorites
- Identifying True Amber
- Some Surefire Signs You're a Rockhound
- Collecting Rock Stamps
- Gem and Mineral Phonecards
- The Mysterious Power of Gemstones and Crystals
- Streaking Minerals - Streak Testing
- Bob's Rock Shop 1st WWW Specimen Image Contest Results!
- Do You Take Pictures of Rocks? If So, You'll Appreciate These - Check Out the Winning Entries!
- Winners competed for custom specimen mounting, mineral specimens, rockhound magazine and newsletter subscriptions, specimen labeling and mineral database software and more... These and other outstanding entries will also be featured in a new version of the Shop's ever popular freeware specimen image screen saver!
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- Product Reviews
- The Photo-Atlas of Minerals CD
- OsoSoft MineralLabel 5.0 - Now Freeware!
- Belomo 10x Loupe: An Inexpensive Russian Triplet
- GemOro Stereo Microscope
- Meiji Techno Binocular and Trinocular Stereo Microscopes
- Raynox Video MicroExplorer
- $8 BIRI Russian Radiation Detector
- OsoSoft MineralLabel 5.0 - Now Freeware!
- Book and CD Reports
- Dana's New Mineralogy, Eighth Edition
- Encyclopedia of Mineral Names, Special Publication 1 of The Canadian Mineralogist
- Gallery of Mineral Specimen Images
- George Campbell
- Ken Colosky
- Martin Friedlander
- Bob Keller
- David Michaels
- D.E. Russell
- Tim Schmanski
- Stuart Wilensky
- Wayne State University
- Ron Zeilstra
- Ken Colosky
Cut Rocks
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Alpine Minerals
Arizona Mineral Company Berg's Rock Shop Cabbers.com CabbingMachines.com CuttingRocks.com DesignerStones.com John Betts Fine Minerals Lawrence H. Conklin, Mineralogist CR-Scientific Element 51 Microminerals Extinctions Fossils Faceters.com FacetingMachines.com |
FacetingRough.com
Gemart Services Gems by Mail Gold N Rocks GreatCabochons.com GreatRough.com GreatSlabs.com Mineral Exploration Services Mineral of the Month Club MineralsWeb African Minerals The Mineralogical Record Magazine PrettyRock RocksandGems.info Rocks and Minerals Magazine |
RockWare Earth Science Software
Simkev Micromounts Shannon & Son's Minerals Silver Supplies The Sunnywood Collection TumblingMachines.com TurquoiseBeads.com TurquoiseRough.com Tysons' Fine Minerals UC Minerals Dan Weinrich Fine Minerals Wilensky Mineral Video Wright's Rock Shop |
- The Shop's Link List
- The Shop's Pick and Links to Thousands of Other Websites of Interest to Rockhounds
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Email Lists and Discussion Groups for Rockhounds |
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Rockhounds List
Lapidary List Sphere Makers and Collectors USFG Faceters List |
Paleolist
Lost Wax Casting Group Grand Canyon Hikers Rough for Sale |
Minerals for Sale
Fossils for Sale Meteorites for Sale Gemstones for Sale |