Image: Halitite (Wellington Formation, Lower Permian; Hutchinson Salt Mine, Hutchinson, Kansas, USA) 1

Description: Rock salt (sedimentary halitite) from the Permian of Kansas, USA. Rock salt is a chemical sedimentary rock that forms by the evaporation of water (usually seawater) and the precipitation of dissolved minerals. Chemical sedimentary rocks that form by the evaporation of water are called evaporites. Rock salt and rock gypsum are the two most common evaporites. Rock salt is composed of the mineral halite (NaCl - sodium chloride). It ranges in color from clearish to grayish to orangish-brown, but sometimes has other colors, such as blue and pinkish-orange. It has a strongly salty taste, is often coarsely-crystalline, and is relatively soft (H = 2.5). Rock salt is also known as halitite, which refers to sedimentary evaporite deposits composed of halite. "Halitite" has also been used in the geologic literature to refer specifically to rock salt that's been contact metamorphosed by igneous intrusions. Stratigraphy: Hutchinson Salt Member, Wellington Formation, Lower Permian Locality: Hutchinson Salt Mine (a.k.a. Strataca Mine), Hutchinson, northeastern Reno County, Kansas, USA
Title: Halitite (Wellington Formation, Lower Permian; Hutchinson Salt Mine, Hutchinson, Kansas, USA) 1
Credit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/47445767@N05/50531484977/
Author: James St. John
Usage Terms: Creative Commons Attribution 2.0
License: CC BY 2.0
License Link: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0
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