Mineral group · Apatite group
Apatite
Ca5(PO4)3(F,Cl,OH)
Apatite is the calcium phosphate group (fluorapatite, chlorapatite, hydroxylapatite) that defines hardness 5 on the Mohs scale and makes up bones and teeth, which is why fossil bone is apatite. Collector specimens are the green hexagonal crystals of Cerro de Mercado (Durango, Mexico), purple fluorapatite from Panasqueira (Portugal) and blue Brazilian gem rough. Most specimens labelled 'apatite' are fluorapatite.
| Formula | Ca5(PO4)3(F,Cl,OH) |
|---|---|
| IMA status | group |
| Crystal system | Hexagonal |
| Mohs hardness | 5 |
| Group | Apatite group |
| Type locality | None |
| Streak | White |
| Specific gravity | 3.2 |
Elsewhere
- Wikidata: Q178397
- Wikipedia: apatite
- Mindat: Apatite
Cite this article
Stratum Study. "Apatite" (Mineral). Stratum Study pack 2026.09, as of 2026-09-19. https://stratum.black/study/minerals/apatite. Accessed 2026-09-20.
@misc{stratum-apatite,
title = {Apatite},
author = {{Stratum Study}},
howpublished = {\url{https://stratum.black/study/minerals/apatite}},
year = {2026},
note = {Mineral article, Stratum Study pack 2026.09, as of 2026-09-19; sources: stratum, wikidata, commons. Accessed 2026-09-20.}
} Citations carry the pack version and the article's as-of date so they resolve to the same text later. The facts themselves belong to the sources listed below; cite those for the science.