Diamonds Beneath the Popigai Crater -- Northern Russia

Geology.com ^ | 11/25/2014 | Hobart King

[JimSEA]

About 35 million years ago an asteroid about 5 to 8 kilometers in diameter, travelling at a speed of about 15 to 20 kilometers per second slammed into the area that is now known as the Tamyr Peninsula of northern Siberia, Russia. [1] The energy delivered by this hypervelocity impact was powerful enough to instantly melt thousands of cubic kilometers of rock and blast millions of metric tons of ejecta high into the air. Some of that ejecta landed on other continents.

The explosion produced a 100 kilometer-wide impact crater with a rim of deformed rock up to 20 kilometers wide. [2] We now know this feature as "Popigai Crater" or "Popigai Astroblem", the seventh largest impact crater that has been identified on Earth.

[JimSEA]

I thought this was very interesting. Diamonds of gem quality are largely limited to very old kimberlite volcanic pipes however, there is some possibility that diamonds formed in impact craters could have value industrially. The efficiency and lower cost of manufactured stones make the mining of this impact deposit unlikely.

The article give a feel for the tremendous violence of an impact. Even diamonds could not form from the carbon rich gneiss at the center of this crater. As a result, the diamond rich breccia is found in a circle with a 12 mile diameter from the point of impact.

[Blood of Tyrants]

” In 2010 the worldwide production of synthetic industrial diamond was about 4.38 billion carats valued between $1.65 billion and $2.50 billion. This is an average price of about 50 cents per carat or less.”

You would have to literally mine a ton of diamonds a day to make it worth it.

[sauropod]

.

[Dubh_Ghlase]

I believe they’ve known about this for many years. They’ve kept it quiet so as to not flood the market and drive the prices down. Supply & demand, don’tcha know!

[dangerdoc]

Whatever happened to cheap diamond film? It was supposed to be available by now.

[DannyTN]

They’re not diamonds, they’re eggs.

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks JimSEA.

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[SunkenCiv]

Haughton Astrobleme: A Mid-Cenozoic Impact Crater Devon Island, Canadian Arctic Archipelago
http://www.researchgate.net/publication/237210205_Haughton_Astrobleme_A_Mid-Cenozoic_Impact_Crater_Devon_Island_Canadian_Arctic_Archipelago

[JimSEA]

Thanks, that’s really quite recent as these impacts go. Makes me hope that we are working on identifying the risks. Something like that would set us back on our heels.

[Windflier]

"5 to 8 kilometers in diameter"

"15 to 20 kilometers per second"

"thousands of cubic kilometers"

"metric tons"

"100 kilometer-wide"

I was born in America, where the common people are educated to use standard English measurements. Despite the fact that the academic class has adopted the metric system in their work, the average man and woman in this country has not.

I understand that a base 10 system of measurement is superior to others, but I also think it's arrogant when writers and scientists insist on using it to communicate to the broad American public when most of us only have a vague grasp of it.

It's really not that hard to communicate to us in a language we understand.

[Blood of Tyrants]

With synthetic diamonds bringing only 50 cents per carat, it ought to be her by now. Perhaps the difficulty working with it is the problem.

[JimSEA]

I can commiserate to a degree because it is hard to use our mind’s eye to visualize something. However, English and metric have become the language of science and it is important to be precise in standardized communications. As much as I’ve traveled in metric countries, I have to think “.6 miles” and “just over a yard” and “about one quart” when driving and getting gas!

[Windflier]

English and metric have become the language of science and it is important to be precise in standardized communications.

That's fine when engaging in internal communications, but when you produce articles and programming intended for ordinary Americans, it's either arrogant, or a gross oversight, to communicate using metric units of measure.

It puts an undue strain on the minds of the audience.

[minnesota_bound]

#10 Base 10 is not superior!
To convert to rods and chains I just google.... : )
convert kilometers to rods
convert kilometers to chains

1 kilometer =
198.838782 rods

1 kilometer =
49.7096954 chains

[JimSEA]

Sorry but this article was primarily directed to geologists and interested parties. It was on Geology.com. I posted it because I thought that it was readily understandable to most anyone.

[Windflier]

I posted it because I thought that it was readily understandable to most anyone.

Relax, bud.

No one's saying the article isn't understandable. Most Americans are familiar enough with the metric system to get the general idea of the measurements and quantities being expressed.

It's just a lot kinder to use units of measure your audience is most familiar with.

[Magnum44]

Jumping on the band wagon:

“5 to 8 kilometers in diameter” = BIG

“15 to 20 kilometers per second” = Really Fast

“thousands of cubic kilometers” = A WHOLE LOT

“metric tons” = HEAVY

“100 kilometer-wide” = Bertha Butt Wide

:)

[Windflier]

Those are the exact mental conversions I use to understand metric ;-)

[gleeaikin]

Does this mean that there could be diamonds formed by the Chesapeake Meteor which hit around the same time also leaving a 60 mile crater?

[JimSEA]

There certainly could if there were carbon rich sediments or metamorphic rocks there (quite possible). However they’d be small and unlikely of ant gem quality. It would be fun to find something like that.