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Call for questions: OPALS (Patreon)

Published:
2026-09-17 21:56:24
Edited:
2026-09-20 00:29:04
Imported:

Content

Next week I'm interviewing Dr. Patrice Rey, a professor of geology and leading expert on opals. His award-winning research helps explain why Australia produces over 90% of the world's precious opals and why opal deposits have been observed on Mars. I'm sure we've all been mesmerized by their iridescence. What questions do you have on opals?

⚠️ Deadline: Saturday, September 19 at 5pm PST

⚠️ QUESTIONS ARE CLOSED

Files

Comments

RJ Doidge

Is there a reason that October is the month for opal birthstone? (#teamlibra)

Kyhlykat

Please ask about fossilized bones that are opalized. They are so cool and I want to understand more about them!

Matt and Lesley

How does one make opal? I’ve been plagued by the Taylor Swift song “Opalite” for months now, so let’s put that earworm to good use. Also is it a practical gem for daily use? What other practical applications does Opal have outside of the jewelry industry? -Lesley

DeeDeeNoodle

Where are Opals on the ethics scale to obtain them? As an American living in Australia, they appear to be pretty good here but look forward to learning the history and about how and where they form! Love, an opal fan

Yuri

Are there ethical considerations with opals like there are with diamonds? Are there "ethical" or "environmentally responsible" opals? Does strip mining happen with opals?

Julia in Seattle

Any specific environments opals are found? If you were to find an opal in a location that would completely blow your mind, where would that be?

Amy Arugula

I've heard not to wear my opal jewelry in the winter because it could crack in the cold. Is that really a concern? Why might that happen?

Priyal

My son Rowan has an opalised pine cone fossil that his grandparents found in Lightning Ridge and would love to know how and why fossils turn into opals. We are also super keen to learn why there are so many opals in Australia, since we live be there.

mish the fish

what are their metaphysical properties? how are they different from "opalite"?

Elle Miller

My birthday is in October so my first thought is how it became the birth stone for that month?

Atlas They-Them

Would love to hear his perspective on the ethics of opal mining, sales, etc. — especially with respect to Indigenous rights in the region and environmental impacts.

Storm

australia seems to mine a lot of opal, what makes it such a good place for opals to form here?

StrawbrryMom 🍓

Do you believe in the metaphysical properties of opals (inspiration, balance, awakening)? I saw something about how our tv’s are made out of crystals (LCD’s - liquid crystal displays) and feel like all rocks are magical now

Amy Arugula

How are synthetic opals made and how do they differ from natural stones?

Grae Klein

Why is is considered bad luck to wear opal if you were not born in October?

Lily May

Why do the colour of opals vary so much? Is it to do with the ground that they develop in?

Storm

what makes the different types of opal have different shimmers and colours

Jackie G

Are there structural similarities between opals and mother of pearl?

Storm

why was i obsessed with them as a kid

Anastasia Press

Both my husband and I wear opal rings everyday, but I had to replace mine because it got weirdly yellow and cloudy but his is fine. What's going on?!

Jackie G

I have heard that opal jewelry is delicate and requires some maintenance or extra care. Is that true?

Jennifer Froh

Can you explain the difference between natural opal, doublets, triplets, lab grow opal, and opalite?

Nicky G

What's the deal with manmade opals? ✨Opalite✨

Jennifer Froh

Explain jelly opals! How? What?? So cool!!

Sonjabird

What color opals are found in the wild vs in the lab? How do I know if the opal I am buying is from nature or the lab?

Jennifer Froh

Why do they come in so many different colors?

DeeDeeNoodle

I also live in Australia and an keen to learn too!

Cecily Templeton

Why are they associated with bad luck? I've heard you cannot buy yourself an opal and separately that you can't wear opals if you weren't born in October.

KineticKyle

I’ve read about a phenomenon of ‘silica gel’ that flashes beautiful colors when found in freshly mined opal that disappears within seconds… what do we know about this mysterious “living phase” of opal?

Momo

Can opals be grown in a lab? Is lab production considered ethical?

Abby L :)

What’s the rarest type of opal?

emma ruhoft

Why do some opals need to be stored in liquid? Can these opals ever be dried out?

Greg Walloch

Can opals get wet or no? I've heard that water can steal their "fire".

Elizabeth

First of all, just why/how do they look that? Also I heard there are some that absorb and release water, is that witchcraft

ValBeListening

WHY ARE THEY SO PRETTY AND MY FAVORITE STONE EVER (diamonds could never)

G Connolly

Why have we not nailed down a process for a more realistic synthetic opal? And why do synthetic opals look… like that? Additionally, why are opals from some parts of the world so fragile and others more “hearty”?

Jaclyn Ficcaglia

Can you explain where opals fall on the mohs scale?

Jennifer Grogan

I came to ask this! I was always told that if you buy yourself an opal it will break.

Michayla G

Why is it considered bad luck to wear opal if it isn't your birthstone?

Carrie Steele

My engagement ring is a fire opal! Is there any lore behind opals? Folks tales, etc?

Bee

My mom (whose birthstone is an opal) once told me it’s bad luck to wear one if it isn’t your birthstone. Can confirm/deny? Are opals for everyone?

Jennifer Grogan

Why are some opals milky white, while others are more brilliant? What’s going on there geologically or chemically or whatever?

Ennifer Jelly Tot

How are opals formed naturally, and how is that different to the way lab grown opals are made? I feel like for most gems stones it hard to tell which are natural and which are lab grown, but with opals it seems easier to spot the difference?

Sarah Vanderkleed

What gives them their color? Where are they found? Are certain colors specific to certain areas on earth? How long does it take for them to form? Is it possible there are any on any other planets or in space? How are they made in a lab? Thanks!

Ellen Orleans

What is the science behind (beneath?) their iridescence?

foughtthelaw

I've seen very expensive ones. I've seen very cheap ones. I've seen one act as the MacGuffin in an Adam Sandler movie... What makes opals valuable or not? And how can you tell the difference between the different types?

Willow175

Is the rainwater in opals the reason they have rainbows?

Olivia Flick

Are they too delicate to be faceted?

Yuri

Also, it looks like opals are very significant to the Aboriginal people, with historical, cultural and spiritual significance. Can you please get an Aboriginal expert to talk about this and, if /how colonization and capitalism has disrupted these things. And what we can do to help

Kat

Came here to also say this! Two Kats need to know.

Em McG

What can you tell us about fossil opals like wood opal and Beverly the Bug? How would someone be able to identify one of the weirder types of opal that don't have the traditional fire we associate with them?

Victoria Hsieh

How do opals stack up compared to other gemstones? (Hardness, colors, rarity) How on earth are they formed?

Laura McLean

Came here to ask this, as well. As an October girlie, are ethical opals a thing and how can we source them, if so?

Dylan V

They are my favorite stone because they are so pretty and so colorful, and I'm color blind! How are they not more valuable?!

Kathleen

How can a regular person tell the difference between a good fake (not human made; rather, truly fake like glass and the like) and the real thing? And: it’s my daughter’s and my birthstone and we’d each like a lovely opal but they’ve gotten a whole lite more expensive than back in the day! How come?

Jenn Bird

Why are opals considered bad luck?

Empress of Smallwood

How does the process of mining opals compare to mining of diamonds? Are there similar ethical concerns?

Sydney S

I know opals are fragile for everyday wear, are there option that hold up to more stress? What makes them so much more fragile than other precious gems?

RestingLaurelFace

Oh, I love opals so much and work with them a lot (only Australian ones, since they're stable) and am excited for this episode! No shade towards geologists, love them, but I would so very much love an episode with a gemologist please please please. Geo's are awesome and passionate about layers of earth, but gemologists are knowledgeable and passionate about gemstones. You'd think the venn diagram would be a circle, but it's very much not haha

Lalie Broten

Asking for my friend, Heidi: in the color spectrum, which pastel brilliancy is most desired

Lalie Broten

Why were opals so popular in the 90s??

Kelly Shaver

Are there ethical or environmental considerations for opals like with other gems and minerals?

Kelly Shaver

Why are opals so fragile compared to other stones?

Jess Bowker

okay so, most of what I know about opals is from Tamora Pierce's Beka Cooper series, which is why my questions pertain to that. thing 1) the opals in the book series are described as fire opals in a pink-ish rock matrix; what is the closest you can get to this in real life? thing 2) how hard is it to cut/shape opals? I've been lead to believe that it is very difficult thing 3) if an opal is submerged in water for a while, will it crack and fall into pieces when dried out? separate but equally important thing is if you haven't read Tamora Pierce (specifically the Beka Cooper series) please read it, not only are opals a Thing™️ in the books but they are also some of my favorite books of all time and definitely led to me buying some very small raw opals on eBay as a teenager (which I still have somewhere but cannot seem to find)

Kelly Shaver

Opalized fossils. What the hell??

Stormi

I’ve also heard both of those and wanted to ask! Had a mother in law who would always give me opal jewelry and pretended like she didn’t know 😹😹😹

Sarah Allan

Why are they so shiny? And how do they have so many colors? They seem very different from other gems/crystals.

CurtisDawg

Oh! Happy early birthday!!!

CurtisDawg

Where do opals fall into the hierarchy of gems? Near the top or bottom?

CurtisDawg

How are opals valued in various cultures?

CurtisDawg

Cool! Another Seattle Ologist!!!

The Other Maya

Third for this one. Please and thank you

The Other Maya

Is this a thing I could go out and rock hunt or no? Like, is this a little nuggie or do you need to open up the earth and find a vein?

Marla J

Mine too. My mother always told me that if you wear opals but aren't born in October it is bad luck. LOL.

Taylor Clinton

- Why do people think they break curses? - What are their magical properties? How can they be used in magic? - Why are they a birth stone?

Erin Everton

my friend Grey wants to know, what organic materials are most likely to opalize when they fossilize?

Anna Taylor

What causes the different colours of opals? Like fire opal?

Jalen Beliveau

Bizarre one but has anyone else seen the movie “Opal Dream”? I watched it when I was so young that I can’t tell you anything about it other than it scared the shit out of me and made me feel very uncomfortable lol. It came out in 2006 which would have made me 6 years old. My mom had a bad habit of buying movies from Walmart or the thrift store and having us kiddos watch them not knowing what they were. So many movies have traumatized me. I watched war of the worlds in the car sandwiched between my older siblings. I had nightmares for months.

Jason E. Farabaugh

Also opalized ammonites, please. They're nautilus-like creatures & my favorite fossils 🐙 🐌 💀 💎

Jason E. Farabaugh

Ok, so I read Lab Girl by American geochemist & general badass Dr. Hope Jahren & there is an oral Easter egg in there & I wonder if your guest is aware? It would be a spectacular jumping off point for a bio / geo discussion on opalescence.

Erin Dewberry

How do opals get their different colors? Is there something chemicalal? Location? And which color variation is the rarest or most expensive?

Jason E. Farabaugh

Jahren describes the first time she felt like a true scientist – after discovering the seed of the hackberry tree is made of opal – she writes, “I was the only person in an infinite exploding universe who knew that this powder was made of opal. In a wide, wide world, full of unimaginable numbers of people, I was – in addition to being small and insufficient – special. I was not only a quirky bundle of genes, but I was also unique existentially, because of the tiny detail that I knew about Cre­ation, because of what I had seen and then understood. Until I phoned someone, the concrete knowledge that opal was the mineral that fortified each seed on each hackberry tree was mine alone.”

Mrs. Potato Head

Why aren’t opals considered to be as valuable as diamonds? They’re so pretty!

foughtthelaw

Adding to this with a question for Allie, my 8yo son loves sparkly rocks / gems / jewelry (but not profanity, apparently) and would want me request this one be fast tracked for a Smallogies.

lothlauren

What causes the variations? Why are some Johnny Cash and others Dolly Parton?

Clay Mohrman

So many! What makes them different base colors? Is the full spectrum of visible light reflected in every opal? What type of energy are opals believed to carry?

Lottie

I have some really cool opal jewelry but I don't wear them often because I'm told opals are super water soluble. Will it deteriorate from just washing my hands after using the bathroom?

jack’s snax

What’s the actual difference between potch and opal?

Reb.Rebbie.Rebel

My mom always said Opals are the bad luck stone. Where does this idea come from?

Rebecca Morrison

How does it work to have so many different colors? Like are fire opals and regular opals really the same thing and what’s happening to make them look so different?

Voxothoth

Can't think of a good question, but there's a good metalcore band named Opal In Sky....yeah!

Maddox

Have there been any major historical opals in any context (jewelry of royalty, religion, wars, etc.)?

tinaincincinnati

I heard an old wives tale that if you own an opal and it's not your birthstone you'll lose it. And my grandma gifted me an opal ring and I LOST IT. (It did turn up eventually but it was missing for a long time) im just one person but my personal experience confirms the old wives tale, is this somehow a real thing?

Peregrine

And also what other types of fossils can be opalized? I’m really curious about the conditions of their formation! Is it the H2O in opal that allows it to occur in fossils?

Peregrine

Opal doesn’t really crystallize, right? How is it classified and how is it different from other silica substances? Thanks!! 💕🪨🐌🐋🍄‍🟫🐸🦗

ilikeplantsmorethanpeople

What makes an opal an opal? They come in so many different colors (and I love it!)

ilikeplantsmorethanpeople

Why are some stones, like opals, more opaque, while some, like amethyst more clear? Or is that just how they're cut?

KayQuimi

My birthstone! \o/ Teenaged me (who couldn't get opal on her class ring) would like to know why they're so fragile, and Current Me wonders why only some of them wind up colorful?

Valerie Bertha

What are the practical uses for opals? Can this be used to help survive (in any way) on Mars?

Peregrine

Oo, is the presence of opal on Mars an indicator that there was water there? Can opal trap/preserve stuff? Like plant/animal material? Or anything else interesting? Can opal ever be dated? (tested to determine when it formed) Thanks!! 💕🪨🐋🐌 Sorry for all the questions, got excited

Rich Orner

After I spent “a small fortune” for a black opal earring and pendant set while in Sydney, I found out from my loving wife that opals are bad luck. Is this a common belief, or just limited to her family? (The jewelry is still setting in their box in my bureau.)

Abby L :)

How do they form to look so ethereal and gorgeous?

Abby L :)

also how did we figure out the mars stuff? - my lovely friend Julia

Addie Cappello she her

Honestly have no idea what opals really are… just sounds like a cute grandma type name for a sweet dog… Where did the name come from? How can you tell a real opal from something that is just shiny poly/plastic or other material? Are they found less shiny in nature? Like “raw” diamonds before they’re polished? Why does Australia have so many opals? The picture here makes them look like something out of the awesome 80s… were they used for decor a bunch during that time? How common are they in nature? Are they harvested for making products and is this practice environmentally unfriendly? Does the Ologist know anyone names Opal? Thanks!! -Addie (she/her) 😊

Marc Rubin

Is opal used in any products, technologies, or industrial processes? Are bra opals a thing? What benefits does one get from sticking opals in their britches? Veterinary gerontology on the horizon? Thanks Alie!!

Peregrine

How abundant is opal on Earth? How does this compare to other things like different popular crystals and other silica substances?

Peregrine

Does opal have other human uses outside of aesthetics and geologic research? i.e. does it have physical properties that allow its usage in any technologies?

Pooja

What makes an opal precious? Are there different grades?

Lizzy Carr

My engagement ring is an opal, and a few people have told me it was a bad idea to get that instead of a diamond. Are opals actually not good stones for rings, or is that just propaganda from Big Diamond?

Holden A. Goose

OHHHHHH MY GOD opals are my favorite stone as a rock nerd 🥹 so excited

Lily

Why are opals so many different colors?

Lily

How long does it take for an opal to form, and under what conditions do you get opal?

DenShark

What makes an opal, an opal?

CandaceCCW

Also, how are “manufactured” opals made?

Quill Sloan

Yippie! The opal is my birth stone!

Quill Sloan

How rare are opalized fossils and is it ethical to have one? If so how much $ and where to buy?

Wandering Wyatt

Just all the hows and whys of formation.

Honor

What are the ancient views and superstions around opals, has it changed over time?

Gardener Gabbi

How have opals been used historically by the first nations people in Australia, and are they involved in discussions about mining opal to ensure environments are not destroyed and not all opals are taken? Is it true opals are mostly found in Queensland? I'm from Brisbane! Also are opals sensitive to water? Will they become damaged or degraded if they are in water, or is that flim flam? Thanks!

Marla J

Is there a drastically different composition between different colored opals? For example how did black opals form in comparison to pale more white opals, or super blue opals? Are different colored opals found in the same mines? What is considered a "fire opal"?

Marla J

Do opals look different when they are polished, or do they look like jewelry grade opals right out of the ground?

Cory

I remember hearing somewhere that opal veins can regenerate in decades, reality or flimflam?

Dr. Lina Carpenter

What even ARE opals??? How are they geologically formed? Opals seem very different from other gemstones - are they categorized as semi-precious or precious? What makes a desirable opal? What colors does opal come in, and which colors are most rare? Does Dr. Rey have a favorite opal color? Some quartz colors (like mystic topaz) are artificially created with irradiation - is that also the case for opals? Is there a rockhounding site where an Ologite could come across an opal?

Andy Pepper

Can opals ("faux-pals?") be manufactured like some other gems?

Megan Bakan (pronounced BACK IN)

When, where, and why was Opal first used as a name? What are opals' significance in culture and commerce historically. (Bakan is pronounced like I'll be BACK IN five minutes.)

🪲Lilahlikesbugs🪲

I’ve got a lot of opal jewellery, and I’m wondering if there’s any kind of symbolism around the stone? Are they gonna make me lucky? Is wearing them going to doom me?

The Deal with Animals- Podcast

My 7 year old has a birthday in October so Opal is her birthstone. Someone told her that opals are considered unlucky and she wanted to know why! Her name is Louisa

Anna Taylor

What creates their irridescence? What is the difference between irridescence and opalescence?

Anna Taylor

Is the irridescence in any way related to mother of pearl and such?

Alexandra Roth

My dad was a gem dealer on the side during the 60s - 80s. He hung out at the Diamond Club on W. 57th Street in NYC, and specialized in opals (which we pronounced "oh-PALS," and I was surprised to hear that there was another way to say it as an adult. Sometimes if he felt an opal was looking dry, he would soak it in glycerine for a month or so. Was that of any use whatsoever, or just some weird idea he picked up?

Alexandra Roth

Question #2: What gives a black opal its dark background?

Meaghan Walsh Gerard

I would like to know some old folklore connected to opals, especially from Indigenous populations.

Abby Grieb

Same but I don’t really like the look of them I feel like they are the worst birth stone 😂 but I also feel like the fake pink stones are lame

Abby Grieb

Why does a lab grown opal look so different from a natural opal?

Elizabeth

Sounds like a lie made up by Big Libra

Joshua Meador

I have opalite plugs (gauges) for my ears. I love the way it looks in the light

Sue & Glen Thayer

Long time listener, first time asker….Why is it that when some people wear opals they crack and split while others can wear them for years with no issue?

Matt and Lesley

Tacking onto my wife’s question but why is opal seeming so rare? I’m aware that synthetics exist but why is opal such a unique process that it’s so uncommon to begin with? -Matt

Jimilow

What is the largest gem quality opal ever found?

Staci Pinkowitz

How do opals form and what does their crystal structure look like? Are they igneous, sedimentary, metamorphic, or categorized in some other way?

John McGrael

Do opals only form from organic matter?? Or can they form in other ways??

Jen

Or abalone! The iridescence is beautiful, and they have always reminded me of one another!

Jen

And when they make synthetic opals, can they map out where the changes in texture will be? Like are they designed or just grown and “let’s see what happens”?

Jen

And when they make synthetic opals, can they map out where the changes in texture will be? Like are they designed?? or just grown and “we’ll see what happens”?

Erin Armitage

How so pretty? How?! Also, is there any way to revive an opal that has dulled from body oil or lotion etc.?

hisarahtops

First time question asker - can their colours change over time? There's a wee bit of water in there, does that impact how the colours shift and change?

Brenna Pixley

Are there Opal deposits on MARS?!?!

BeckytheSassySeagrassScientist

Are opals 'delicate'? If so why? My engagement ring is an emerald instead of an opal (as I requested) because my husband wanted to get 'something that will really last'. I mean, ultimately the ring is pretty and just a symbol...but is he full of shit? 😂

BeckytheSassySeagrassScientist

Basics time! Why are they shiny? What causes the different colors? Do labels like 'fire opal' or 'black opal' actually mean something?

Laura Thompson

A lot of my family was very superstitious about opals causing misfortune if they are not your birthstone and I have heard from other people that they will become lost if they are not your birthstone. Where did these beliefs originate.

abigail

Why did the diamond get chosen as “the” symbol of love when the opal genuinely shows a gem version of how it feels to be in love

wyswysia

When creating opals in the lab, is there any way to influence where and what colors the flashy bits (secondary question: what are those called?) are?

Lydia Meyer

Why do opals need to be stored with higher humidity? Do opals dry out?

Mouse Paxton

Why do some fossils opalize? Can fossils be turned into other precious stones? What's the difference between opals and opalite? Why does absinthe develop an opalescent appearance when you add water to it?

g0ose0nTheLo0se

Why don’t we name our kids Opal anymore?

Bryodiversity

What is the coolest, weirdest, and/or most amazing opalized fossil you know of?

Bryodiversity

Can you tell us the story of “Eric” (officially AM F99374), the opalized pliosaur (PLY-uh-SORE) fossil? I’ve wondered for a long time why such a unique and relatively famous fossil—originally discovered in 1987 near Coober Pedy, South Australia—wasn’t assigned a species (Umoonasaurus demoscyllus) until 2006, and why that news didn’t receive more publicity. (As a major paleo nerd, I first read about Eric probably in the late ‘90s, and I heard the name Umoonasaurus well over a decade ago, but I somehow never learned that Eric was the holotype of Umoonasaurus until just now!)

Karen Seidler

I have heard a superstion that if it's not your birthstone you shouldn't wear opals. Where did that come from?

Comet Omlette

What would it take for me to opalize my skeleton

Anna Rose

How best can I care for them so they last? I know they are fragile.

Megan Younce

Same! Fellow October baby would love to know.

Megan Younce

I’ve heard the same about letting it get too hot!

ChickenHawk

Is it true that opals should stored in a moist environment? Either wrapped in damp cotton wool or a little dab of petroleum jelly?

ChickenHawk

Buy your opals from Australia! Good environmental protection and labor laws.

Bennett Vanderbosch

How are they unique from other gemstones? Are they even similar?

floraandthefaun

and apparently also: how on mars are they formed?!?! 😱😱 do the opal deposits tell us exciting things about mars geology? what's going on out there? 🤓

H. R. Pufinstuf

are there ethical concerns with mining opals/is there a “blood diamond” equivalent for opals? are synthetic opals a better alternative?