Widespread iron hydroxide mineral, 03B1; -FeO(OH), the most common ingredient of iron rust.
In terms of relative abundance, it is second only to hematite ( 03B1; -Fe 2 O 3 ) among iron oxides. Goethite varies in colour from yellow-brown to red and is the source for the pigment known as yellow ocher; it is also the primary mineral in some important iron ores, such as those in the Alsace-Lorraine basin in France. Other important deposits are found in the southern Appalachian Mountains of the U.S., and in Brazil, South Africa, Russia, and Australia.