Carnotite

Carnotite, soft, yellow, radioactive mineral. Carnotite is a hydrous vanadium-ore mineral with a formula of K₂(UO₂)₂(VO₄)₂·3H₂O; the water content actually varies with humidity. Carnotite was named after French mining engineer and chemist Marie-Adolphe Carnot, who lived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In the United States, carnotite is found disseminated through sandstone in Paradox Valley and other parts of the Colorado Plateau in Colorado and Utah. It is also found in Australia, Morocco, Zaire, and the Turkistan region of Asia. Carnotite is a source of vanadium and of uranium.