Editorial for Special Issue “New Mineral Species and Their Crystal Structures”

Mineralogy is the oldest and one of the most important sciences of the geological cycle. Minerals, the basis of overwhelming mass of solid matter in the universe, are direct subjects of investigation in mineralogy. Minerals, or mineral species, are generally solid crystalline substances. Their definition indicates that, they are: (1) naturally occurring; (2) belonging to the distinct structural type; (3) stable, varying merely in the relatively small limits of chemical composition. If a given mineral differs from other known species in its structure (2) and/or composition (3) then it can be considered as a new mineral species[…