Raite is a rare mineral typically found as fibrous, yellow-to-brown acicular needles or radiating aggregates. It is almost exclusively found in the complex alkaline pegmatites of the Kola Peninsula in Russia, often associated with other exotic titanium-bearing silicates.
Is this raite?
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 raite with a known reference. Raite sits at Mohs 3, softer than the next harder reference, harder than the previous one.
- 2Check the streakDrag the specimen across an unglazed porcelain plate. Streak: yellow.
- 3Read the lusterHold the specimen under a strong light. Luster: vitreous, may be silky.
- 4Match the color rangeCompare against the expected color range: brown, violet red, golden yellow, reddish brown.
- 5Look at form & habitCrystal system: monoclinic. Typical habit: acicular.
Often confused with
Raite vs. its common look-alikes, and how to tell them apart in the field.
How to tell apart: Apatite is the harder of the two (Mohs 5 vs. 3); streak differs, so Raite leaves yellow, Apatite leaves white.
How to tell apart: Streak differs, so Raite leaves yellow, Astrophyllite leaves golden; luster reads vitreous, may be silky on Raite and submetallic, pearly, greasy on Astrophyllite.
How to tell apart: Labuntsovite is the harder of the two (Mohs 6 vs. 3); streak differs, so Raite leaves yellow, Labuntsovite leaves white; luster reads vitreous, may be silky on Raite and greasy on Labuntsovite.
Often found alongside raite
Minerals reported to co-occur with raite. Spotting these in float or country rock is a strong cue you are in the right ground.
All properties
- Chemical formula
- Na₃Mn₃Ti₀.₂₅Si₈O₂₀(OH)₂(H₂O)₁₀
- Mohs hardness
- 3
- Density
- 2.32-2.39 g/cm³
- Colors
- Streak
- Yellow
- Luster
- Vitreous, may be silky
- Transparency
- Semitransparent
- Crystal system
- Monoclinic
- Crystal habit
- Acicular
- Cleavage
- Perfect on {100}, {010}, and {001}
- Rarity
- Rare
- Uses
- Collector
- Host rock
- On the walls of fractures filled with nepheline in alkalic pegmatite in a differentiated alkalic massif (Lovozero massif, Russia)
Where rockhounds find raite
Classic worldwide localities
- Jubilee pegmatite, Mt. Karnasurt, near the Ilmajok River valley, Lovozero massif, and in the Khibiny massif, Kola Peninsula, Russia
- Mont Saint-Hilaire, Quebec, Canada
Field-hunting tip
Where it forms: On the walls of fractures filled with nepheline in alkalic pegmatite in a differentiated alkalic massif (Lovozero massif, Russia). If you start seeing nepheline, aegirine, mountainite in float, you are in the right ground. Typical habit: acicular. Train your eye for that shape before scanning the outcrop.
Common questions
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Find raite on the map
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