How is amber formed in nature?

The mineral, which looks like wood resin, has been of great interest to researchers for many centuries. Amber was known even to people of the prehistoric era. Pliny the elder, for example, believed that it was petrified sap. Agricola supported the ancient philosopher, and even Lomonosov came to this conclusion. Centuries passed. How modern scientists explain the origin of amber, we learn, looking at current sources.

Approximately about 50 million years ago, even before the appearance of man on Earth, in the territory of today's Sweden, part of the Baltic was land. And this is an important fact for understanding the processes of origin of amber in nature.

The first step in the formation of a mineral is the isolation of the resin of coniferous trees. This was most likely due to the sharp warming of the climate. Pines were highly sensitive to climate change. When hurricanes and thunderstorms started, the pines produced a special resin-resin.

Thick and very sticky liquid led to the formation of grooves on the trunks, drops, clots, which under the weight of their own weight were on the ground. The bulk of the resin flowed from the pine during the spring windbreaks. But even the rodents, who did not regret the pines, injured the trees, and a thickly flowing resin was taken to “heal” the wounds.

The process of resin extraction could be completed and begin again, which led already to multi-layered accumulations of the resin.. Insects could sit on the resin, they stuck to the sticky liquid, and remained there. Forever.

So you can call the second stage of the formation of amber. This process is due to physico-chemical changes. It was very important in what specific conditions the resin would be. If the soil was dry, then oxygen took an active part in the transformation of the resin: its stability increased, its hardness increased.

Next comes the erosion, transfer and deposition of resin in the water. The conditions that could be necessary for the formation of amber are associated with hydrodynamics and geochemistry of the basin.

To form amber in nature, we need special water - silt, with oxygen, rich in potassium. When these waters come into contact with the resin, succinic acid and more esters of this acid appear in it. At the end of these difficult processes, not only amber itself, but also glauconite is formed. And the definition of the latter led researchers to the idea of ​​weakly alkaline and weakly reducing environments.

These transformations have led to the fact that the resin is heavily compacted, has become not as soluble as initially, its viscosity and melting temperatures have increased. Small molecules in the resin have become one macromolecule.

The climate in northern Europe, where amber was formed millions of years ago, resembled the current climatic conditions of the southern European part and subtropics. The average annual temperature indicator did not fall below 18 degrees above zero.

What else can be said about the climate in which amber is formed:

• not very high illumination of the forest; light approached the lower branches a little because of the upper closed crown;
• vegetation did not allow ultraviolet to approach the ground;
• forest soils were sandy, covered with a layer of soft soil litter;
• the air is almost supersaturated with water vapor that rose from moist soil.

In such a climate, everything favored the development of lush vegetation. There is even such a thing - “amber forest”. This complex plant community is difficult to characterize even with very detailed descriptions. Some pines there, as some scientists believe, were up to twenty species.

After the climate became much more severe, the “amber forests” disappeared. Most of the territory they occupied went into the ocean. Only amber, resin that incredibly petrified, remained a witness to prehistoric times. Amber "remembers" the planet before the appearance of man.

The hardness and melting point of amber is higher than that of the best grades of copal. It is proved that the yellow-honey mineral is soluble in terpenic and organic hydrocarbons. In its natural occurrence, amber can be found in the form of fragments of various sizes, which resemble the resinous secretions of coniferous trees.

The density of amber is almost equal to the density of sea water: in salt water the mineral floats, and in fresh water it sinks. This circumstance explains the stability and non-erasability of the stone, which is experiencing a repeated transfer, washing, reburial, and all this for tens of millions of years.

There are other physical properties of the mineral.

• On the flame of a candle, amber melts and begins to boil at a temperature of 250-300 degrees. Heating causes the mineral to smolder, to burn with a smoking smoke. The smell at the same time will be pleasant, resinous. By the way, this is the best way to distinguish genuine amber from a fake - heating a fake, of course, will not bring any resinous aroma.

• When rubbed, amber is electrified, attracts small objects, charges with static electricity. And another interesting historical fact is connected with this: the ancient philosopher Thales of Miletus discovered this property of amber. The researchers picked up the discovery of the philosopher, saw blue sparks when rubbing stone with wool, and called these sparks an electron. And the electron, by the way, is the Greek name for amber.

• If you ask, and what is the color of amber, the answer will be unequivocal - yellow. But experts counted about two hundred color shades enclosed in a rather wide range of colors. Under the influence of the sun amber will glow. The glitter of the stone is glassy, ​​resinous, flared and uneven.

• The air bubbles observed in amber include about 30% oxygen.

Bugs, mosquitoes, butterflies, lizards, leaves, flowers, pine cones and other organic remains preserved in amber make the mineral so unique and valuable to science. It turns out that this stone is not just beautiful, its formation is more interesting than its decorative sides.

It cannot be said that all the amber deposits are sufficiently investigated. Primorskoe field has detailed characteristics that can not be said about others.

There are primary and secondary deposits. The first are multifactorially related to the places of coal mining. The distribution of amber can not be called uniform. These are allochthonous deposits (these include Fushunskoye, Uglovskoye, Alaskinskoye). Secondary (alluvial) clusters of stone are in some way distant from their initial location. There are many types of such placers. The main place of production of ornamental amber is the Baltic-Dnieper province (the emphasis is not on the Baltic Sea, but on the territory from the North Sea to the Black Sea with the capture of Denmark, Poland, and also Germany, Ukraine, Belarus).

The largest in the world is the Primorskoye field, which is located not in Kaliningrad itself, of course, but 40 km away. This deposit has been known since Paleolithic times.

Each field should be studied in detail, and today researchers are emphasizing this. Amber is an excellent ornamental stone, so it makes sense to explore places where you can mine it and make mining technologies more and more perfect.

The main area of ​​use is jewelry production. Mineral jewelry is very beautiful and certainly unusual. It is specially processed, giving it shape, brilliance and radiance. You can buy a small amber pendant, and you can buy chic beads, earrings, rings and bracelets. If the rim for the stone is precious, it will look great, but simple metal is fine, because in beads and earrings the main thing is the stone itself.

These are really valuable decorations that make you the owner of a unique artifact.

For souvenirs, the mineral is also used: figurines and caskets, watches and chess, pyramids are made from natural amber (or with its inclusions). Amber plates, spoons and forks are made by hand. There is an opinion that this dishware has neutralizing properties. Mainly acquire it because of the beauty, the sun's glow.

Apply stone and medicine in the form of amber oil:

• in the treatment of injuries - sprains, bruises, to warm up the muscles;
• for massage of different parts of the body (most often the vertebral parts);
• for rubbing with pneumonia, bronchitis, catarrhal diseases;
• for rubbing in diseases of the musculoskeletal system.

But amber powder is used in cosmetology. It has a healing effect on the dermis, removes pigmentation, rejuvenates. From this powder, by the way, make amber powder used for the treatment of gums.

Waste from stone processing is often the decor of the paintings. Finally, there is such a masterpiece of art as the Amber Room, which is not in vain as a wonder of the world.

Amber, its properties and origin is a topic that has not yet been exhausted; it is studied by serious researchers, children and adults who are not indifferent to biology.

How amber is mined, see the next video.