Sodium lithium boron silicate hydroxide. That's the chemical formula of Kryptonite, the mineral rock that Lex Luther stole from a museum in the movie Superman Returns. Everyone knows that the radioactive, green ore from the planet Krypton is the ultimate weakness of Superman, robbing him of his strength. Batman always makes sure to keep some handy, since he's always prepared for a rumble with the Man of Steel.
With the two heroes prepared to throw down against each other in Injustice: Gods Among Us, it wouldn't hurt to know about the real Kyrptonite. Not the type you read about in the DC Comics, but the real Kryptonite discovered [on Earth] in November 2006.
The real Kryptonite isn't called Kryptonite at all; it's called Jadarite. You might think it's called Jadarite from the jade-green color of Kryptonite in the Superman comics, but that isn't the case. Jadarite is an earthy silicate mineral that's white in color. The name Jadarite comes from where the mineral was discovered — in the Jadar Valley in Serbia by the Rio Tinto mining group. It was found in a drill core from a mine in the area. Scientists at the Natural History Museum and Canada's National Research Council confirmed the chemical formula of the new mineral and named it Jadarite.
The color isn't the only way Jadarite is different from its comic-counterpart. Jadarite does not glow, isn't radioactive, and it doesn't contain flourine (all properties of Kryptonite). Other than that, all of the chemistry matches that of Kryptonite.
That said, there has been a white version of Kryptonite in the Superman comics before. white Kryptonite (referred to as "Bizarro Krytponite" in The Adventures of Superboy TV show) kills all plant life, whether Kryptonian or not. It induces decay immediately upon exposure in a 25 yard range. In the comics, it was used to destroy Virus X and cure Superman.
That's the history behind the "real" Kryptonite. Jadarite could be used as a source of lithium, like in batteries, or as a source of cleaning. As of now, there has been no way to test Jadarite's potential against those with super-human powers — namely Superman. So when you come across Kryptonite in Injustice, just know, it's not the Jadarite that we have here on Earth. Otherwise, Superman wins every time.
Now we'll get back to the Batman vs. Any Superhero Ever argument that takes place daily in the GameZone office.
Injustice: Gods Among Us releases on Xbox 360, PS3 and Wii U on April 16th.
You can follow Senior Editor Lance Liebl on Twitter @Lance_GZ. He likes talking sports, video games, movies, and the stupidity of celebrities. Email at [email protected]
