Beryl (Aquamarine)

In addition to the wide variety of gemstones, beryl also produces a very light metal used in the nuclear and aeronautical industries. Beryl is a very hard and light mineral, and the wide range of colors in which it appears makes it a highly prized stone. The precious varieties of beryl are the coveted emerald (green), heliodorus (yellow), morganite (pink) and aquamarine (blue). It belongs to the group of silicates and contains the metals aluminum and beryllium. It is very light and hard, impossible to be scratched with a pocketknife. It is used in high strength alloys. It is very difficult to melt beryl, the most that can be obtained by heating the mineral is a slight rounding of the ends.