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GS-I :
  • 28 September, 2019

  • 3 Min Read

Goldschmidtite

GS-I: Goldschmidtite

News

A new, curious mineral has been discovered inside a diamond unearthed from a mine in South Africa.

Goldschmidtite

  • The mineral has been named goldschmidtite, after Victor Moritz Goldschmidt, the Norwegian scientist acknowledged as the founder of modern geochemistry.
  • Goldschmidtite has an unusual chemical signature for a mineral from Earth’s mantle, according to the University of Alberta, a student of which discovered it.

Formation:

  • While the mantle is dominated by elements such as magnesium and iron, goldschmidtite has high concentrations of niobium, potassium and the rare earth elements lanthanum and cerium.
  • It is dark green and opaque.
  • Though the mantle makes up about 80 per cent of the Earth’s volume, very little is known about it.
  • Reaching the mantle is not easy; it is about 2,900 km thick and no attempt to drill into it has been successful.
  • Diamonds hold clues as they are found up to 160 km beneath the surface, in the upper mantle.
  • Diamonds that are unearthed were brought up closer to the surface, probably as a result of violent volcanic eruptions when the Earth was hotter, according to the Smithsonian Magazine.

Source: Indian Express


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