Halite
Halite from the Wieliczka salt mine, Małopolskie, Poland
General
Category	Halide mineral
Chemical formula	NaCl
Strunz classification	03.AA.20
Crystal symmetry	Isometric hexoctahedral 4/m 3 2/m
Unit cell	a = 5.6404(1) Å; Z = 4
Identification
Molar mass	58.433 g/mol
Color	Colorless or white; also blue, purple, red, pink, yellow, orange, or gray
Crystal habit	Predominantly cubes and in massive sedimentary beds, but also granular, fibrous and compact
Crystal system	Cubic
Cleavage	Perfect {001}, three directions cubic
Fracture	Conchoidal
Tenacity	Brittle
Mohs scale hardness	2 - 2.5
Luster	Vitreous
Streak	White
Diaphaneity	Transparent
Specific gravity	2.17
Optical properties	Isotropic
Refractive index	n = 1.544
Solubility	Water soluble
Other characteristics	Salty flavor, Fluorescent
References	[1][2][3]

Halite /ˈhælaɪt/, commonly known as rock salt, is the mineral form of sodium chloride (NaCl). Halite forms isometric crystals. The mineral is typically colorless or white, but may also be light blue, dark blue, purple, pink, red, orange, yellow or gray depending on the amount and type of impurities. It commonly occurs with other evaporite deposit minerals such as several of the sulfates, halides, and borates.

Occurrence[link]

Halite cubes from the Stassfurt Potash deposit, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany (size: 6.7 x 1.9 x 1.7 cm)

Hopper crystal cast of halite in a Jurassic rock, Carmel Formation, Utah

Halite occurs in vast beds of sedimentary evaporite minerals that result from the drying up of enclosed lakes, playas, and seas. Salt beds may be hundreds of meters thick and underlie broad areas. In the United States and Canada extensive underground beds extend from the Appalachian basin of western New York through parts of Ontario and under much of the Michigan Basin. Other deposits are in Ohio, Kansas, New Mexico, Nova Scotia and Saskatchewan. The Khewra salt mine is a massive deposit of halite near Islamabad, Pakistan. In the United Kingdom there are three mines; the largest of these is at Winsford in Cheshire producing half a million tonnes on average in six months.^[4]

Salt domes are vertical diapirs or pipe-like masses of salt that have been essentially "squeezed up" from underlying salt beds by mobilization due to the weight of overlying rock. Salt domes contain anhydrite, gypsum, and native sulfur, in addition to halite and sylvite. They are common along the Gulf coasts of Texas and Louisiana and are often associated with petroleum deposits. Germany, Spain, the Netherlands, Romania and Iran also have salt domes. Salt glaciers exist in arid Iran where the salt has broken through the surface at high elevation and flows downhill. In all of these cases, halite is said to be behaving in the manner of a rheid.

Unusual, purple, fibrous vein filling halite is found in France and a few other localities. Halite crystals termed hopper crystals appear to be "skeletons" of the typical cubes, with the edges present and stairstep depressions on, or rather in, each crystal face. In a rapidly crystallizing environment the edges of the cubes simply grow faster than the centers. Halite crystals form very quickly in some rapidly evaporating lakes resulting in modern artifacts with a coating or encrustation of halite crystals. Halite flowers are rare stalactites of curling fibers of halite that are found in certain arid caves of Australia's Nullarbor Plain. Halite stalactites and encrustations are also reported in the Quincy native copper mine of Hancock, Michigan.

Uses[link]

Halite is often used both residentially and municipally for managing ice. Because brine (a solution of water and salt) has a lower freezing point than pure water, putting salt or saltwater on ice that is near 0°C will cause it to melt. (This effect is called the Freezing-point depression.) It is common for homeowners in cold climates to spread salt on their walkways and driveways after a snow storm to melt the ice. It is not necessary to use so much salt that the ice is completely melted; rather, a small amount of salt will weaken the ice so that it can be easily removed by other means. Also, many cities will spread a mixture of sand and salt on roads during and after a snowstorm to improve traction.

Salt is also used extensively in cooking as a flavor enhancer and to cure a wide variety of foods such as bacon and fish.^[5] Larger pieces can be ground in a salt mill or dusted over food from a shaker as finishing salt.

Gallery[link]

• 

  Unusual halite crystals from Faiyum, Egypt

• 

  Large natural crystal of halite, showing cubic cleavage breaks

• 

  Halite from Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan Mine in Rocanville, Saskatchewan, Canada

• 

  Devil's Golf Course in Death Valley, California. Halite formed by the evaporation of ancient Lake Manly.

See also[link]

• Salt
• Salt tectonics

References[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Halite

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (September 2008)

LaCosta Tucker (born December 12, 1951) is an American country music artist who recorded in the 1970s and 1980s as La Costa. The sister of country singer Tanya Tucker, LaCosta charted several singles of her own in the 1970s on the Billboard country singles charts, including the #3 "Get on My Love Train."

Biography[link]

Born in Seminole, Texas, Tucker moved around frequently, as her father Beau Tucker was a construction worker. Tucker had two siblings, Donald and younger sister, Tanya Tucker. Beau felt LaCosta had the talent to be a star, and Tucker won her first talent contest at age four. In-between entering beauty pageants and talent shows, she performed with Tanya in a band called the Country Westerners. She graduated from Cochise College in Douglas, Arizona and began working as a medical records technician as she sang in clubs and became Miss Country Music, Phoenix.

La Costa married, and around this time, Tanya became a country music star. La Costa moved to Las Vegas, to be near Tanya, and Beau Tucker helped her get a recording contract with Capitol Records in 1974. Going only by La Costa, she soon had a hit record with "I Wanna Get To You", which landed at 25 on the country charts, followed by "Get On My Love Train" at number 3 and "He Took Me for a Ride" at number 10.^[1] She charted 10 more singles for Capitol and recorded five albums for the label. In 1982 she moved to Elektra Records and she charted with "Love Take It Easy On Me", under her full name of La Costa Tucker.^[1]

In 1989 LaCosta toured with Tanya, and by the 1990s was serving as president of Tanya's fan club. She raised two children, and for a time made gourmet candy for sale on her sister's website.

Many of LaCosta Tucker's recordings are out of print, but a 2000 release, Sisters: An Anthology, had some of her hits packaged together with Tanya's material.^[2]

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

Singles[link]

References[link]