London (UK) - A mineral matching the composition of Superman's feared Kryptonite has been discovered in a mine in Serbia.

A research team in the mine at Jadar discovered the unusual mineral, and when they could not identify it they called in Dr Chris Stanley, a mineralogist at London's Natural History Museum.

"Towards the end of my research I searched the web using the mineral's chemical formula - sodium lithium boron silicate hydroxide - and was amazed to discover that same scientific name, written on a case of rock containing kryptonite stolen by Lex Luther from a museum in the film Superman Returns," he told the BBC.

"The new mineral does not contain fluorine (which it does in the film) and is white rather than green but, in all other respects, the chemistry matches that for the rock containing Kryptonite."

The new mineral will be formally named Jadarite, after the town in which it was discovered, rather than the novel but probably royalty-infused Kryptonite.