Discoveries of gems and minerals occur every year. For instance, one man from Michigan made the discovery which changes his life, when he came across some glowing rocks on the beaches of Lake Superior in Michigan. The rocks, which he called“Yooperlites,” emit a weird glow, seeming to be partially molten rock.
Erik Rintamaki, who is an expert geologist, a gem and mineral dealer, made his life-changing discovery in June 2017, after hunting for rocks in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, bringing with him a black light. The black light helps illuminate the glowing rocks, which he said that litter the Lake Superior beach.
At the time of a nighttime excursion along the shore of the Lake Superior in Michigan, Erik Rintamaki found rocks which glowed like lava, with the help of a UV light.
He sent the so-called "Yooperlites" to Michigan Tech University, as well as the University of Saskatchewan, where the rocks were confirmed to be a type of Syenite which contained Sodalite.
Sodalite, which can usually be found in Canada, is what actually has the responsibility for the glowing, as well as the iridescent nature of the rocks.
Sodalite is often blue, but the rocks which Rintamaki discovered were mostly made up of granite or basalt. Also, some geologists have confirmed that this is the first set of stones which was officially tested, as well as confirmed.
Erik Rintamaki is a 43-year-old Brimley resident who has turned his finding of these stones into a business.
He sells the stones which he has discovered for over thirty dollars a pound, additionally to giving tours of the areas in which he discovered them.
On social media, you can find a lot of his tour photos, as well as his group findings.
Rintamaki named the Yooperlites after the region in which he has discovered them; in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, which in slang terms is called "Yooper." Glacial movements appearing in this area was actually what put these stones there.
Featured Image Credit: YouTube
