mirabilite
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English
14
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
1
Syllables
8
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
An evaporite, consisting of sodium sulfate, with the chemical formula Na₂SO₄·10H₂O.
Example Sentences
- "Mounds of mirabilite have been observed near the north-west side of White Island, (e.g., Debenham 1965). These mirabilites probably originated by infiltration of sea water into the ice shelf, followed by ablation of the surface until the brines were exposed to evaporation and freeze concentration with precipitation of mirabilite on the surface."
- "Bedded deposits of mirabilite occur in coastal areas of East Antarctica, such as the Vestfold Hills and in the Skarvsnes area of Lutzow-Holm Bay, about 1500 km further west (Fig 1.3)."
- "Mirabilite could have been and probably was scooped up off the cave floor and out of breakdown hollows, or brushed off ceilings and walls where it forms abundantly."
Etymology
From Latin mīrābilis (“miraculous”) + -ite. From the Latin term sal mirabilis (“wonderful salt”), which was used by German-Dutch alchemist Johann Rudolph Glauber (1604–1670) after he inadvertently synthesised the substance.