Pyrite belongs to something called the cubic system. “Cubic” minerals. The cubic, or isometric, crystal system is ...

This 830-million-year-old crystal might contain life. ... The halite would need to be opened in order to confirm that this is in fact organic matter, and that it is still alive.

The halite was very well preserved, the researchers said, and they were able to study beds of the crystal that had been deposited at 10 different depths along the rock core.

Primary fluid inclusions in bedded halite from the 830-million-year-old Browne Formation of central Australia contain organic solids and liquids, as documented with transmitted light and UV-vis ...