Microscopy is a servant of all the sciences, and the microscopic examination of minerals is an important technique which should be mastered by all students of geology early in their careers. Advanced modern textbooks on both optics and mineralogy are available, and our intention is not that this new textbook should replace these but that it should serve as an introductory text or a first stepping-stone to the study of optical mineralogy. The present text has been written with full awareness that it will probably be used as a laboratory handbook, serving as a quick reference to the properties of minerals, but nevertheless care has been taken to present a systematic explanation of the use of the microscope as well as theoretical aspects of optical mineralogy. The book is therefore suitable for the novice either studying as an individual or participating in classwork. <...> 

All existing introductory reviews of mineralogy are written according to the same algorithm, sometimes called the "Dana System of Mineralogy". Even modern advanced handbooks, which are certainly necessary, include basic data on minerals and are essentially descriptive. When basic information on the chemistry, structure, optical and physical properties, distinguished features and para-genesis of 200-400 minerals is presented, then there is practically no further space available to include new ideas and concepts based on recent mineral studies.

A possible solution to this dilemma would be to present a book beginning where introductory textbooks end for those already familiar with the elementary concepts. Such a volume would be tailored to specialists in all fields of science and industry, interested in the most recent results in mineralogy.

This approach may be called Advanced Mineralogy. Here, an attempt has been made to survey the current possibilities and aims in mineral matter investigations, including the main characteristics of all the methods, the most important problems and topics of mineralogy, and related studies.

The individual volumes are composed of short, condensed chapters. Each chapter presents in a complete, albeit condensed, form specific problems, methods, theories, and directions of investigations, and estimates their importance and strategic position in science and industry.

This volume of Advanced Mineralogy encompasses six different areas having two features in common: they are related to one of the largest enterprises of the second half of this century; and represent the ultimate and final extension of the concept of mineral matter.

- Understanding mineral matter in Space is one of the principal purposes of cosmic exploration. This includes the results of comparative planetology, lunar epopee, sophisticated meteorite studies (now more than 500 meteorite minerals), discovery of the interstellar mineral dust forming some 60 trillion of earth masses in the Galaxy, and terrestrial impact crater studies. It is possible now to speak of mineralogy of the Universum, and the mineralogical type of the states of matter in the Universe. 

Amazonite is a mineral that has attracted scientific attention for generations and has been studied by prominent geologists including A. des Cloiseaux, N.I. Koksharov, V.I. Vernadsky, A.E. Fersman, V.M. Goldschmidt, and A.N. Zavaritsky. The history of amazonite discovery and scientific research is rich in riddles, paradoxes, misconceptions, and presuppositions. The time and place of the first amazonite finding is heavily debated even today. The very name of the mineral seems paradoxical, as there have been no known amazonite fields in the Amazon River basin. Evaluations of the mineral’s significance remain quite controversial [1, 2, 23]. Despite more than two centuries of research history and innumerable papers dedicated to amazonite, it continues to draw the attention of geologists and mineralogists. What are the reasons for this continuing interest in amazonite? <...>