@article{Perry:2008,
author = {Perry, RS and Sephton, MA},
journal = {In Focus},
pages = {62--76},
title = {Solving the mystery of desert varnish with microscopy},
volume = {11},
year = {2008}
}

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TY  - JOUR
AB  - In areas such as Death Valley California whole mountains shimmer as light is reflected from widespread coatings of black opalescent desert varnish (Figure 1). Similar desert varnishes have been found on all continents, in locations such as the Gobi (Figure 2), Sonoran, Mojave, Namibian (Figure 3), Victorian and Atacama Deserts. These dark, lustrous coatings have attracted the interest of scientists for centuries. In 1852, the German naturalist and explorer Alexander Humboldt observed desert  varnish on a transatlantic expedition and questioned how this enigmatic feature may have formed. His contemporary, Charles Darwin also engaged in the search for explanations for this unusual rock coating and, in 1871, attempted to satisfy his interest by performing chemical analyses. To date many other noteworthy scientists have examined desert varnish and have  commented on its bulk chemistry, the arid conditions in which it forms in and the concentration of manganese that makes it opaque and causes it to be black.
AU  - Perry,RS
AU  - Sephton,MA
EP  - 76
PY  - 2008///
SN  - 1750-4740
SP  - 62
TI  - Solving the mystery of desert varnish with microscopy
T2  - In Focus
VL  - 11
ER  - 

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