Carnotite << KAHR nuh tyt >> is a yellow mineral. It is a source of uranium and vanadium. Most carnotite occurs as a powder, but some is found as tiny, flat crystals. Geologists believe carnotite forms by the action of surface water on uraninite, a type of uranium oxide. For this reason, they call carnotite a secondary mineral. Carnotite often appears with similarly formed minerals. In the 1940’s, important deposits of carnotite were discovered in the United States in the region where Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and Arizona meet.
