Sometimes the best adventures are in the places we least expect, and that's certainly the case with this marvelous gypsum ...

But there’s no magic involved, just some very particular geology. The chamber contains giant selenite crystals (gypsum, CaSO4 · 2 H2O), some of the largest natural crystals ever found on Earth.

One area of investigation has been the effect of different carboxyl additives on the growth habits of hemihydrate gypsum crystals. Studies have shown that additives like sodium stearate and EDTA ...