Tags: Chemical Substance, Mineral.
Ikaite is the mineral name for the hexahydrate of calcium carbonate CaCO3·6H2O. Ikaite tends to form very steep or spiky pyramidal crystals often radially arranged of varied sizes from thumbnail size aggregates to gigantic salient spurs. It is only found in a metastable state and decomposes rapidly by loosing most of its water content once removed from near-freezing water. This ‘melting mineral’ is more commonly known through its pseudomorphs.
