Narsarsukite is a rare sodium titanium silicate mineral typically found in alkaline igneous environments. It is best identified by its distinct yellow-to-brown tabular or prismatic tetragonal crystals, often occurring in pegmatite pockets.
Is this narsarsukite?
5-step field checkRun through these checks against the specimen in your hand. The more boxes tick, the more confident the ID.
- 1Test the hardnessTry to scratch narsarsukite with a known reference. Narsarsukite sits at Mohs 5.5-7, softer than the next harder reference, harder than the previous one.
- 2Check the streakDrag the specimen across an unglazed porcelain plate. Streak: white.
- 3Read the lusterHold the specimen under a strong light. Luster: vitreous, pearly on {110}.
- 4Match the color rangeCompare against the expected color range: brown, brownish gray, colorless, green, honey yellow.
- 5Look at form & habitCrystal system: tetragonal. Typical habit: tabular.
Often confused with
Narsarsukite vs. its common look-alikes, and how to tell them apart in the field.
Often found alongside narsarsukite
Minerals reported to co-occur with narsarsukite. Spotting these in float or country rock is a strong cue you are in the right ground.
All properties
- Chemical formula
- Na₂(Ti,Fe)Si₄(O,F)₁₁
- Mohs hardness
- 5.5-7
- Density
- 2.64-2.83 g/cm³
- Streak
- White
- Luster
- Vitreous, pearly on {110}
- Transparency
- Transparent to translucent
- Crystal system
- Tetragonal
- Crystal habit
- Tabular
- Cleavage
- {100} and {110}, good
- Rarity
- Rare
- Uses
- Collector
- Host rock
- In pegmatite (Narssârssuk, Greenland); in quartz veins in syenite intruding limestone (Sweetgrass Hills, Montana, USA)
Where rockhounds find narsarsukite
Classic worldwide localities
- Whitlash, Sweetgrass Hills, Sweetgrass Co., Montana, USA
- Diamond Jo quarry, Magnet Cove, Hot Spring Co., and from Granite Mountain, near Little Rock, Pulaski Co., Arkansas, USA
- Mt. Flora, Lovozero massif, Kola Peninsula, Russia
- Murun massif, southwest of Olekminsk, Yakutia, Russia
- Oslofjord, Norway
- Bellerberg volcano, two km north of Mayen, Eifel district, Germany
Field-hunting tip
Where it forms: In pegmatite (Narssârssuk, Greenland); in quartz veins in syenite intruding limestone (Sweetgrass Hills, Montana, USA). If you start seeing aegirine, microcline, albite in float, you are in the right ground. Typical habit: tabular. Train your eye for that shape before scanning the outcrop.
Common questions
How do you identify narsarsukite?+
Where is narsarsukite found?+
What rocks look like narsarsukite?+
What minerals are found with narsarsukite?+
What kind of rock does narsarsukite form in?+
What is narsarsukite used for?+
Find narsarsukite on the map
RockHoundR shows mapped rockhounding spots, access rules, and lets you log every find.
