A mineral form of calcium carbonate that is slightly less stable than calcite and often found in shells, pearls, and hot springs.
Named after Aragon, a region in Spain where the mineral was first identified and studied scientifically in the 18th century. The suffix '-ite' is a standard mineralogical naming convention for minerals.
Aragonite is so chemically restless that it slowly transforms into calcite over geological time, which means ancient shells and pearls are slowly turning into different minerals—paleontologists have to account for this molecular time-bomb when studying fossils.
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