(NLDO) - A special diamond has revealed that the vast oceans on the surface of the Earth are just a puddle compared to the world hidden deep inside the Earth.
According to Science Alert, a study led by mineral physicist Tingting Gu from the New York Gemological Institute and Purdue University (USA) shows that a diamond from Botswana could be evidence of an unimaginable world inside the Earth.
Impurities inside a strange diamond show that 660 km below the Earth is an area richer in water than the world's surface oceans - Photo: NATURE GEOSCIENCE
This unusual diamond has numerous fractures containing traces of ringwoodite, ferropericlase, enstatite and other minerals, suggesting it formed 660 km below the Earth's surface.
That's where the mantle's "transition zone" exists, a mysterious region between the planet's upper and lower mantles.
Surprisingly, some details from the diamond show that the area was extremely watery, significantly more so than the environment on Earth's surface.
"The presence of ringwoodite along with hydrated phases suggests a wet environment at this boundary," said Dr. Gu.
Most of the Earth’s surface is covered by ocean. However, based on what deep objects like the diamond above reveal, all that ocean is just a small puddle compared to the planet’s total water.
The Earth's crust is a fractured and fragmented thing, with separate tectonic plates constantly moving, colliding and sliding under each other's edges. At these subduction zones, water seeps deeper into the planet, reaching as far as the lower mantle.
Over time, it returns to the surface through volcanic activity. This whole process is called the deep water cycle, which is separate from the water cycle that operates on the surface.
Deep diamonds are real treasures in the quest to understand this mysterious deep water cycle, which helps us understand more about the planet's geology.
In this case, the Botswana diamond could represent a very thick aquifer, a veritable "aquarium" in the Earth's interior.
However, this water would be intermingled with structures rather than condensing into vast oceans as on the surface.
Source: https://nld.com.vn/kim-cuong-botswana-tiet-lo-the-gioi-ky-la-an-ben-trong-trai-dat-196250123105243434.htm
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