The Agate Mystery: Why We Can't Synthesize This Common Gem

I have a Geology degree from McMaster University circa 2000. 20+ years later I figured out the majority of my field work up there was looking for gold or other ore deposits. It's funny to see my ex-professors names on mining claims (in the current 2022 GIS shapefiles no less). The north shore of Superior is one of the most beautiful places in the world. Thanks for a great and honest video!

My brother (who lives in coastal Oregon) is an absolute agate hound. He has easily collected over a thousand pounds of various agates from the shore and riverbeds over the years. Several of his specimens are easily 20 lbs. and over a foot across. (His back yard looks like an agate convention). I’d love to watch him set loose on the shore of Lake Michigan - but then there’d be none left. I’m definitely going to share this video with him for the science.

my interest in geology honestly begins and ends at "oooh pretty rock" but your delivery held my attention and made me curious about things I hadn't thought to wonder about. Very high quality

It’s rare when I can watch a video with so much information and follow to the end without becoming lost. You know your subject so well and your enthusiasm gets my attention. The qualities of a good teacher. Great job.

As an amateur rock hound, this is really interesting to me. I've found so many random pretty rocks and crystals while wandering aimlessly in the wilderness and never knew how they formed

I collect minerals and, while I have some fairly valuable samples, one of my favorites is an enhydro agate. There's a pocket of water trapped inside with an air bubble so it sloshes a bit. One face was ground and polished so you can see it. The water in it is very possibly over 100 million years old.

This video has basically doubled my knowledge of agates. Thanks again!

There's a special place in my heart for people that can be this excited about rocks, critters, trains and the like. 🧡

If you want to see some serious Lake Superior agates, and get a glimpse into the world of hardcore agate collectors, I highly recommend getting “The Lake Superior Agate” by Scott Wolter. It is a cool little book. Love your videos, keep up the great work!

Love the way you present, you've put a smile on my face and passed on knowledge that I didn't know! Thanks, Tammi

Wow! It's really cool that with as much as we know in geology, there's always more to learn. Thanks Alexis!

Every time I learn something new about agates it's always really cool! And I think it's fun to note that I grew up around Lake Superior on a street called Agate. I'm also not very good at finding those little gems on the beach but every once in a while I'll find a little itty bitty one and It's always super exciting.

I do enjoy the patterns of agate. Chalcedony (which agate is a variety of) also includes bloodstone (not to be confused with hematite/haematite, also called blood stone, named because it produces a blood red colour when being cut hema/haema, meaning blood, tite, the suffix for stones, literally "blood stone").

I just want to point out that at least on the Minnesota shoreline, most of the public land along the lake is in unit designations where keeping any found rocks is illegal (State Parks or Scientific and Natural Areas), so while you may find them there, if you want to take one home you either need to find it on private land or buy it in a gift shop.

I truly respect a scientist that can say that they don't understand how things happen. Thank you, lovely lady, for admitting to the fact that we don't always get it right.

Michigan is home to another type of "agate" that is man made and takes considerably less time to produce. The Detroit agate, also known as Fordite, is layers of paint that has collected on the dollies that carry car bodies through the painting process. Eventually they get cleaned off, but before they do tons of layers build up and get baked to make a really hard stone like substance. People cut this to show the layers and make some really cool jewelry. The really old specimens can fetch sizable sums.

Wow! I had no idea! Agate is like a Gateway rock for collectors and one of the first I ever held or learned about. There is a lot of agate in Tennessee and I have found a lot of it. I have never heard of Moganite! Ok, you have me hooked, when is your next episode?

Agate formation is such a fascinating topic. I think Keith and Padden were on the right track. They were materials scientists at Bell Labs back in the 1960s, and published a series of 3 articles on spherulitic crystallization. But those articles and the book you read are very technical works. The best book on agates for the average rockhound is the one by Pabian and others “Agates Treasures of the Earth. It goes into all the basics, and then goes on a worldwide tour of major agate localities, complete with lots of awesome color photos.

Awesome content :) Full of passion, genuine intrigue and knowledge! Keep up the great work!

Love your videos. They're a combo of geology, history, and geography wrapped up in an entertaining presentation.