What is the scale Mohs?

MOHS scale is a system of mineral hardness, designed by Friedrich Mohs in 1812. Mohs was a mineralogist from Germany who wanted a simple way of testing "scratching" the ability of each mineral. What a mineral might scratch or what a mineral could scratch is determined by its location on the scale. For example, one tested the hardness of mineral with things such as nail, penny, glass or knife. Even having access to only a few of these things in the field could help determine where the position of minerals in relation to others.

On a traditional scale MOHS is the most difficult mineral diamond. It cannot be scratched with another mineral and can scratch any other mineral. Its hardness is measured as number 10. Some minerals fell between 1-10 and scientists suggested a revised scale that evaluates hardness up to 15 years. This allows some minerals that have fallen into gray areas to be reclassified. For example, ointment has hardness 1 on Mohs even on an absolute hardness scale. Another mineral up,Gypsum, it is twice as hard and absolutely hard.

big differences occur during the scale. For example, a diamond, rated 10 on the older Mohs scale, has an absolute hardness of 1500. So it is 1500 times hard as talc. Quartz, listed as number 7, has 100 rating of absolute hardness. This shows that the numbers on the scale do not translate twice as hard or three times hard.

Instead, the MOHS offers a hardness measurement that is relative to other objects. It is still quite an easy system that has to learn and one can soon practice measurement of minerals with little difficulty. However, accessing access to certain minerals such as diamonds can be difficult for junior mineralogues.