The Galapagos archipelago is one of the most famous groups of islands in the world. Many of the animal and plant species are unique because of the islands’ isolated location in the Pacific, 1,000 kilometers off of the coast of Ecuador. Thanks to a recently-signed special cooperation agreement, geoscientists based at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) in Germany will have the opportunity in coming years to research the geological development of the Galapagos Islands. An unusual mineral has recently been discovered that raises far-reaching questions about the composition of the magma source from which these oceanic islands were formed.