Rare minerals have been discovered by specialists in the Crimean cave “Tavrida”, said Olga Chervyatsova, a mineralogist and researcher at the Shulgan-Tash Reserve (Bashkiria).
Most of the phosphates were found in the cave, she said. “Of the rare minerals – montgomeryite, which was formed due to the reaction in the acidic environment of the bats that inhabited this cave, and clay minerals”, – quoted her on July 29, “RIA Novosti”.
Minerals that had not been found in Russia before were found in the cave. As Chervyatsova added, these are manganese-containing phosphate robertsite and phosphate of a complex composition kingsmountite. Moreover, the second mineral was previously found only in Australia. “The potential of this cave to discover new minerals is very high,” the scientist concluded.
Earlier in July, scientists recorded a temperature anomaly in the cave. In May, it was reported about the beginning of underground design work in “Tavrida”, as well as about the arrangement of the territory for a scientific and recreational center.
A cave about 2 km long was discovered in the Belogorsk region of the Crimea near the village of Zuya during the construction of the Tavrida highway in 2018.