Retrospect on how mineralogical sciences have developed is briefly given from Greek time to the present. Based on this retrospect, the author's prospect on future trend of mineralogical sciences is discussed. In widening the field of application of mineralogy to the systems like extra-terrestrial materials, biominerals, environmental materials, it is stressed that understanding of interface structure and kinetics at atomic level will become crucial, in addition to that of bulk phase and equilibrium thermodynamics.

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There are many polyvalent elements constituting minerals. The atomic valencies of Fe and As in minerals including both of them are +2, +3 and +3, +5, respectively. Scorodite, Fe³⁺[As⁵⁺O₄]·2H₂O, seen in oxidized zone of As-bearing metallic ore deposits contains Fe³⁺ and As⁵⁺, both of which are in their highest valency states, respectively. The mineral co-exists with parasymplesite, Fe₃²⁺[As⁵⁺O₄]₂·8H₂O, which contains Fe²⁺(lowest valency state) and As⁵⁺(highest valency state), as seen in the Kiura mine, Oita Prefecture. However, in the same ore deposit, scorodite co-exists with karibibite, Fe₂³⁺As₄³⁺O₉·1∼2H₂O, too, in which Fe is in the highest and As in the lowest valency states, respectively. Such unreasonable relations seen in discrete two minerals from the same genetical units have eluded our consideration to date.
In case of a single mineral species, karelianite, V₂O₃, a part of V³⁺ is substituted by Fe³⁺. In aqueous solution naked V³⁺ does not co-exist with naked Fe³⁺ under room temperature condition. Since this is a metamorphic mineral, it is plausible to ascribe the maintenance of this relation to the possible existence of oxygen-armored cations through the metamorphic process. It is highly desirable to cultivate our ability capable of finding such a point.
Apart from the above discussion, we use the expression that there is a mineralizaiton of arsenic in an ore deposit if any arsenic mineral is concentrated therein. Any discussion is necessary to specify the states of arsenic in this case, where it could behave as anion, cation, or both.

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By combining mineralogical studies and multi-isotopic chronological studies on samples from the earliest planetary crusts recovered from the moon, Antarctica and hot deserts, we are now in a position to propose a new concept “Evolution of Planetary Materials”. For example, a coarse-grained andesitic material rich in Na-plagioclase and diopside in the IAB iron meteorite represents a partial melt of chondritic materials with ³⁹Ar-⁴⁰Ar age of 4520 Ma. An Antarctic eucrite, Asuka 881394 possibly from a crust of 4Vesta gives ²⁶Al-²⁶Mg age of 4562±1 Ma relative to the age for Allende CAI. A gray anorthositic clast in lunar meteorite Y86032 formed from a magma ocean gives ³⁹Ar-⁴⁰Ar age of ∼4400 Ma. Many lunar and Martian meteorites recovered from hot deserts recently give us more chances of studying these planets. Dhofar 489 gives us information on the magnesian anorthosite and Dhofar 378 is a product of the latest volcanic activities of Mars. Within a decade, we will be able to obtain minerals beyond the Earth-Moon system by sample-return missions from asteroids, comets and Mars. Detailed mineralogical, geochemical studies of these samples and remote-sensing missions will further advance the idea of “Evolution of Planetary Materials” in the 21^st century.

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After summarizing increasing involvement of mineralogy into the inorganic material technology during the last 50 years, the author mentioned the environmental mineralogy and nanomaterials technology as the most promising fields where mineralogy can now play important roles. As for the X-ray crystallography, in which the author has been engaged for long, it is important to transmit knowhow in structure analyses to the following generation. X-ray determination of electron-density distribution is expected to contribute development of new functional materials with the strongly correlated electronic states, i.e. functional materials for spin and/or orbital electrons.

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What is Mineral Description or Descriptive Mineralogy ? It is diffucult to divide discipline of mineralgogy, but most mineralogical articles include Mineral Descriptions. “Traditional Mineral Descriptions” including crystal structures, new minerals, rare minerals, mineral chemistry etc. occupy about 27% in average of 5 journals (Am. Min., Min. Mag., Eu.J.M., Can. Min., JMPS) issued from 2000 to June, 2002. During 1999 to 2001, the major nationalities of the first author on the new mineral proposals are Russia (50), Canada (28), Italy (15), Germany (14), Australia (10), Japan (9), and Switzerland (9). Also the major original localities of new minerals are Russia (44), USA (15), Germany (13), Italy (10), Japan (9), Canada (8), and Spain (8).

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This paper reviews recent trend in analytical approach in mineralogy based on the presentations at the micro symposium on mineral analysis at the annual meeting of the Mineralogical Society of Japan. There were 9 oral and 7 poster presentations, which included several new approaches such as XANES analysis of Ce in geochemically important samples, PIXIE analysis of fluid inclusion, mineralogical identification by EBSD as well as conventional approaches. The former approach emphasizes on application of new methodology while the latter one emphasizes scientific finding from specific samples of interest using well-established techniques. It is concluded that the advance of instrumental analytical techniques open a new door of the mineral Kingdom in both fields.

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Mineral textures give us an important information to clarify their geological phenomena occurred under various physical, chemical and/or biological conditions in the earth and/or planets. In this session entitled by Mineral Textures, the total 22 research reports were presented. The 15 reports of them concerned meteorites, and others, rock-forming and ore minerals. K. Tomeoka discussed the mineral-genesis in the proto-solar system based upon the microscopic texture analyses of chondrite meteorites in invited talk.

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A session for structural sciences in mineralogy has been organized as the micro-symposia in the 50^th anniversary meeting of the Mineralogical Society of Japan, October 2-3, 2002, Osaka, Japan. Three invited and 19 contributed papers were presented in the three oral and one poster sessions. Three topics were presented in the invited talks: I. New structural concepts in mineralogy, II. Design of materials based on the correlation between crystal structure and properties, and III. Crystal structure of (Sr_x,Ca_1−x)₂SiO₄ (x=0∼1).

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Summary of the session for local structures organized as the micro-symposium in the Annual Meeting of Mineralogical Society of Japan at the 50th anniversary was presented. The session consisted of 9 presentations. Importance of understanding local structures was displayed by these presentations in mineralogical sciences as well as other material sciences. It was also pointed out that the final goal was not clarify the local structures and that the relationships among local structures, local properties, and macro-properties were more important things to be elucidated.

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Study of the phase equilibrium of minerals has been one of the major field in Mineralogy. Various studies on phase relations of minerals have been conducted to date under the controlled conditions of pressure, temperature, and oxygen fugacity. The knowledge of the phase equilibrium and phase relations provides important clues to estimate the formation conditions of the minerals. 14 papers, which can estimate various environments including the Earth's surface and its deep interior, and those of the extraterrestrial and early solar system, are presented in this session.

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The mini-symposium on structural change of minerals was organized at the 50^th Anniversary Meeting of the Mineralogical Society of Japan. Ten papers by oral, including three invited papers, and 4 papers by poster were presented at the meeting. Presented papers are characterized by the dominance of experimental works related to high pressure phase transformations and the theoretical works related to computer simulations. Abstracts of three invited papers and the list of the presented papers are given.

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A session for material sciences in mineralogy has been organized as the micro-symposia in the annual meeting of Mineralogical Society of Japan at the 50th anniversary. The session consisted of 19-presentations of various experimental subjects including computerized experiments such as applications for energy, optics, magnetisms, diffusion, catalysis, bio-minerals, crystal growth, nano- and micro-structures, hydrogen-bonding, high pressures etc. Although the variety characterizes the nature of mineralogy, the current trend dose not always contain necessary fields in it. Applied physics of crystals, including the mechanical nature and optics combined with modern technology, are unfortunately lacking or insufficient to date in curriculums of mineralogy. Beauty of minerals may be attractive even for school-children and efficient to cultivate their future interests in natural sciences.

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The mini-symposium was organized to discuss the growth and dissolution processes of minerals at the 50^th anniversary meeting. Three invited and six talks and nine posters were presented in the symposium. The studies in three fields: (1) in-situ observation of mineral dissolution processes, (2) in-situ observation of mineral growth at high temperature and (3) growth theory, were reviewed in the invited talks.

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This article summarizes oral and poster papers presented for a session “reactions” of the 50th anniversary meeting of the Mineralogical Society of Japan. Sixteen out of 19 papers discussed interactions mainly between minerals and water at low pressures and temperatures occurring at the Earth's surface.

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