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Kryptonite Discovered?
25-Apr-2007
Written by: Jess Boettger
Superman’s Achilles’ heel found in Serbia.
Superman may not be real, but it appears that his one weakness, kryptonite, is very real indeed—or at least, something with the same formula of the “kryptonite” in 2006’s Superman movie.
In Serbia, the Rio Tinto company was drilling for borate. But instead of borate, they found a new mineral. Mineral experts and researchers were promptly enlisted to ID the rock, as it didn’t match anything previously known to science. It was then discovered that this new mineral is composed of virtually the same formula that can be found written on a case containing kryptonite in the latest Superman flick.
Disappointingly, the new discovery will not be named kryptonite. Its formula, sodium lithium boron silicate hydroxide is (minus the addition of fluorine) the identical twin of the Superman formula. But without the presence of the element krypton, it cannot officially be named kryptonite. So instead, researchers have settled on the name jadarite, as it was discovered in Serbia’s Jadar Basin. The formula is where the similarities end, though: jadarite is white and powdery and does not glow green like the movie’s version.
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